As we enter our second year as a Take A Stand Outdoors Team we are gearing up and excited about what God will do through our ministry in 2014. 2013 was a great year for us but we want to keep moving forward in our call to share Jesus Christ. God has given us a passion to use the outdoors for fellowship, discipleship, personal spiritual growth, and evangelism. We view the outdoors and the hunting community as our mission field. My sister, brother-in-law, and their two daughters leave for Argentina in just a few weeks. They know God has called them to serve Him in this capacity and they are following in obedience. They have spent a few years preparing and training for their ministry in this country. Learning the language, practices, and culture of the people they will serve was difficult and took some time but now they are ready and I know God will use them in mighty ways. We view our ministry at Take A Stand Outdoors in a similar way. We spend a lot of time speaking the language of the people we are trying to reach. This happens at game dinners, weekly "field tip" devotionals, and anytime we rub shoulders with outdoorsmen. We communicate the Gospel to outdoorsmen in a way they can understand it and relate to it. We also study the practices and beliefs of the people we are trying to reach and live in the culture. Just like missionaries to foreign lands this can be a very exciting experience. For example, calling in a turkey for an unsaved buddy and then taking time to pray and thank God for it after he drops the hammer on it has opened doors for us. Sitting around the camp fire sharing big buck stories and how God provided the opportunity is a great time of fellowship and living in the culture. Sharing our stories with thousands of men each year through wild game dinners has had an impact. We have counted 52 men who have come to know Christ as their Savior this past year at one of our dinners. That’s just a few examples of what we do. We communicate the Gospel to the outdoorsmen through spiritual parallels found in God’s creation and outdoors.
Our team wants to say thank you to those who have prayed for us and supported us through this past year. We know many of you and I am sure there are some who supports us who we haven't met, but we know we needed all of you! Please continue to support and pray for us as we go through this next year pursuing God, others, and the outdoors!
-Brandon Baker
