in other words
Things to Ponder: Setting Worthwhile Goals
By Grant Williams
When I was a youngster I had
one extremely important goal. The
first goal I remember setting was being
able to wrap my arms around my dad’s
legs and lift him off the ground. For a
little kid that was an ominous goal that
took many attempts and several years
to accomplish. The day did finally
come and my dad and I were both
pretty excited about how strong I was
becoming. With that under my belt I felt
ready to start taking on the big stuff like
girls and sports.
My father, on the other hand, had a
different goal. His goal for life was
summed up in a Bible verse. Acts 20:24
says, ”However, I consider my life worth
nothing to me, if only I may finish the
race and complete the task the Lord Jesus
has given me-the task of testifying to the
gospel of God’s grace.” He certainly
had other goals like providing for his
family and being a good role model, but
the most important thing to him always
remained teaching his children about
Jesus.
Recently I received a note
from my dad that included these words,
Voices From the Crowd:
The Boot Leather Bull continued from page 18
down some roads bordering some nice
clear-cuts, I found the tracks from the
two spikes and the cow from the day be-
fore and then I found one nice really big
set of tracks all by themselves. That got
my attention, so I snooped around in that
area but came up empty.
I was gradually moving toward
where I had saw the bull the night be-
fore, I planned on setting up on a ridge
above a road system and shooting across
the small creek onto the hillside the bull
had been on. It would be a fair poke,
but well within my .270 capabilities. I
worked my way around on the road sys-
tem I was on and ran into more tracks,
fresh track. I did not see any fresh man
tracks on the road, so maybe these elk
would still be around.
I dogged the tracks as they made
their way into a clear-cut where it was
obvious they had fed that morning and
then my eye caught where the ground
was all torn up. My first thought was
that the herd had blown out across the
road, but further inspection showed that
two bull elk had been fighting.
I had mixed feelings about that,
my experience that two bulls fighting
this late in the year meant spikes, but the
one track looked pretty good size. Those
darn elk had been everywhere. It took
me a long time to figure out where they
went and actually it was after I had given
up on them that I saw they were going up
in the same direction I was heading up
this road.
I was eager to get to my ridge to
watch for the bull from the night before.
The elk tracks had led off into the reprod
alongside the road, I had an idea where
they were going. “Oops, there he is,”
my mind said to the rest of my body!
“How the years fly. At the cross that all
changes. We grow up, we grow older &
then we are with our Lord.” There is a
certainty in those words that tells me my
dad is still pursuing his goal to run the
race well. He has been a great father and
role model.
Now that I am getting older my
goals are obviously different than when
I was a kid. Lifting heavy things and
impressing other people is no longer
that important. The ability to work and
also being a good husband have become
much more important to me than ever
before. I thank God that my dad set
such a good example for me to follow.
Have you been blessed with a good role
model? Are you following the Lord, or
have you turned away from Him? The
older I get the more convinced I become
april16
2015
21
my dad’s goal has always been the wisest
choice he could have made.
No matter where you are in life
it is never too late to re-evaluate your
goals! Have you sought strength, power,
and wealth? Are you satisfied with what
you have accomplished? Our goals
should change as we mature. What are
your goals at the present time? Maybe
you have never set any goals and are just
coasting through life and nothing really
matters. If that sounds like you, Jesus
offers these words in John 10:9-10, “I am
the door, if anyone enters through Me, he
shall be saved, and shall go in and out,
and find pasture. The thief comes only
to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came
that they might have life, and might have
it abundantly.”
Up the road I was walking stood
a bull elk, butt to me with his head bent
back licking his haunches. I knelt down
on one knee and pulled the butt stock
into my shoulder.
It was about an 80-yard shot,
but I don’t shoot bulls in the butt and a
headshot was too risky. I knew the drill,
calm down and wait; the bull was a rag
horn 5 point. The wind was in my favor
and after an agonizing wait the bull took
a couple steps to his right, which opened
up a shot to the ribs. My rifle barked and
the darn bull turned and started running
right down the road at me.
Well, needless to say my rifle
went off a few more times, in fact I emp-
tied it on that bull. The last shot had the
bull falling down at the edge of the road.
That was another first for me. It was late
in the afternoon, time to get to work. Of
course my cell phone would not get out,
so I had only one option and that was to
gut and skin the bull. The old dogs
were barking from the 12-mile plus day
as I slipped back into the driver’s seat of
the old Ford that night.
Back at home I made connec-
tions with local forest security contractor
and he volunteered to meet me the next
day in the road closure area I was hunt-
ing. I was just finishing quartering up
the bull and bagging him as Fred pulled
up. Jovial as always Fred was glad to
help as he jockeyed his tools out of the
way to make a hole for the elk meat.
Fred saved me a lot of packing this year,
at least four miles one way to that bull.
I like to think that as I have got-
ten older that I hunt smarter, but the real-
ity is that nothing is a good substitute for
good old boot leather on the ground.
Church Directory (in alphabetical order)
Assembly of God
Sunday School: 9:45 AM
Morning Worship: 11:00 AM
Sunday Evening Prayer: 6:00 PM
Wayne Marr, Pastor
662 Jefferson Avenue
503-429-0373
Church of Jesus Christ
of Latter Day Saints
Sunday Schedule:
Sacrament Meeting: 10:00 AM
Sunday School & Primary: 11:20 AM
Relief Society, Priesthood and
Young Women: 12:10 PM
Roger Cook, Branch President
1350 E. Knott Street
503-429-7151
Grace Family Fellowship
Sunday School: 9:00 AM
Worship Service: 10:30 AM
Thursday Prayer: 6:00 PM
Greg “Mac” McCallum, Pastor
957 State Avenue
503-429-6790
Nehalem Valley Bible Church
Sunday School: 9:45 AM
Worship Service: 10:45 AM
Tues. Ladies Bible Study: 9:30 AM
Wednesday Service: 7:00 PM
Sat. Men’s Prayer Meeting: 6:30 AM
Gary Taylor, Pastor
Grant & North Streets
503-429-5378
Open Door Gathering Place
Service: Sunday 6:00 PM
Grant Williams, Pastor
375 North Street
St. Mary’s Catholic Church
Wednesday Religious Education:
3:15-4:30 PM
Sunday Mass: 12:00 PM
Rev. Luan Tran, Administrator
960 Missouri Avenue
503-429-8841
Vernonia Christian Church
Sunday School: 9:45 AM
Worship Service in Youth &
Family Center: 11:00 AM
www.VernoniaChristianChurch.org
Sam Hough, Pastor
410 North Street
503-429-6522
Vernonia Foursquare Church
Sunday Worship Service: 10:30 AM
Children’s Sunday School
Carl Pense, Pastor
850 Madison Avenue
503-429-1103
Vernonia Seventh-day Adventist
Church
Sabbath (Saturday) Services
Sabbath School: 9:30 AM
Worship Service: 11:00 AM
www.VernoniaSDAC.org
Larry Gibson, Pastor
2nd Ave. and Nehalem St.
503-429-8301
