Let me tell you a story of God's provision...

It was November 11, 2011. I was staying the night with my very good friends Andrew (Big) and Jen Beauchamp cuz me and Big were going hunting in the morning with his dad Scott (the director of the HOP Springfield). I was telling Jen that if it was cold and I don’t see anything in the morning I was done hunting for the year and maybe forever. (Just a little dramatic haha). We got our gear all together and I laid on the couch to go to sleep only to wake up in 4 hours to get dressed in EVERYTHING I owned that is warm.

It is the first day of shotgun season (my first gun hunt) and it is freezing! We piled into Scotts truck and headed up the highway to some land we got permission to hunt. I was directed in the direction I should walk to find the tree stand I would be in that day. Its pitch black and unfamiliar and cold…just like I like it! I find my stand and climb up about 16 feet. The sun was just making it appearance to us so I could make out my surroundings so I got settled in for the day. I got a text from Scott saying a nice 8 point deer was heading up the creek my way and I should take a shot if I can. I keep looking to the left and it comes but I don’t have a shot so I had to pass. About 30 minutes later it shows up in the cornfield to my right. I thought, “this could be my only chance at a 8 pointer of this size!” I was nervous…my heart was racing and my knees were weak. This is the biggest deer I have ever seen in shooting range. At this point its about 35 yards away (a perfect distance for a good kill shot) so I put the sight of my 12 gauge on his shoulder and fired….nothing..the buck looks around takes a few steps and keeps eating. I thought “what just happened?” So I put another round in the chamber and aim again…shoot and again… nothing…he looks around takes a few steps and eats…at this point I am mad and frustrated at myself. I am a really good and accurate shot normally so I’m not sure what’s happening. I shoulder my gun with one more round in the chamber, aim and….NOTHING!...again…he looks around and takes a few steps then jogs off. I missed three times. I felt like a huge failure. How do you miss with a gun??? I called Scott and told him I was mad cuz I missed. He said “don’t be mad. Now you know what its like to miss and you got that out of your system so the next one that comes along you’ll get.” I thought “yeah right scott” but I said “ok” I got off the phone with hime and called Big and told him I missed. He was surprised. So for the next 20 minutes I sat in my stand eating powder donuts and drinking dr. pepper thinking I ruined all my chances of getting a good buck in my life. I saw a buck chasing a does out in a field about 200 yards away and it was the one I missed. Lame. About 30 minutes later I saw a big deer walking towards us from the corn field. It was about 150 yards out and I sent the guys a text saying “there is a huge deer coming our way. The way it was walking in it could have gone towards any of us. But it came towards me!! This was the biggest deer I have ever seen and I was beyond nervous! I had ranged some points out for distance earlier. it came in at about 100 yards away and walked up the hedge row to my right. At one point I thought it was going to go back out to the far cornfield but it kept walking up the hedge row by the corn field that I had missed that 8 pointer in earlier. it was about 75 yards away from me which is within gun range but I thought I have to wait to see if it comes in closer. I didn’t n to risk it on this monster. Sure enough I came in a little at a time and at 65 yards out it turned broad side and I had my gun up and on his shoulder. I prayed to the Lord that this would work this time and fired! He jumped up ran right past my stand and I blindly took my last shot not aiming anywhere close to him and about 3o yards past my stand he fell…DEAD…!!! I did the hunters silent fist pump/yell and praised the Lord! I called Scott and told him “I just shot the biggest deer of my life!!!!” he replied with “Katie, it’s the only deer you have shot in your life.” true story. But I told him it was huge and he’s dead and I shot him!! We decided to wait about an hour to let him expire fully then we would go down and get him. I called Big and said “I just shot the biggest deer of my life!!!” he replied “it’s the only deer of your life…” (like father like son.) But then he said he saw it fall and he was stoked and wanted to get down and go get it right then but we waited. That was one of the longest hours of my life…no joke. I called some of my closest friends and family and told them that I got a monster deer. Some were more enthusiastic than others but they were all happy for ME! Finally I saw Scott coming through the woods towards me so I got down and we three went looking in the direction it fell. I saw a huge rack sticking up tall above the grass and freaked out! It was huge! We took about 30 pictures at that moment and the guys were crying and I was in shock! Big went up to get the truck and Scott guided me through the field dressing the beast. It was one of the best experiences ever. When Big came back he and Scott drug my deer out of the field for me about 60 yards to the truck and we loaded him up, tagged him and took off to the homestead. Satisfied and wide eyed at the goodness of God. When we got to Scotts we took another photo shoot with my deer and I cleaned him up real good. Every once in awhile saying “I shoot this huge buck. He is all mine. Thank you Jesus!!!”

The Lord showed me the prophetic picture He painted before me that cold brisk November 12^th morning.

“Expect bigger and better cuz I’ve got bigger and better to give you my dear.”

To be continued with the bigger and better stories…