Parables of Gunnar: Pleasing Progress

The boy is 18 months old, which means still very immature for the breed. He is all legs and wiriness, prone to bouts of running around in circles, throwing rags or pieces of moss up in the air just because he can, and generally being playful and frequently over-exuberant. But amongst all of that he is slowly being trained into the deer tracking dog that I want him to be.

Frequently a deer dog is kept in the car during the stalking outing and only used should a beast be wounded and/or lost. I want more from my dog; I want him to accompany me in the woods and on the hills, walking to heel, sitting down next to me as I scan the woodland, and doing his bit to literally point me in the direction of where the deer will be. Then I want him to lie down out of sight while I close on the selected beast and take the shot. I need him to remain quiet and motionless until all this is done and I go back to him and release him verbally so that we can go to the shot beast and get it processed for the larder back at home. All of this requires a lot of training and buckets of patience. But if I do not succeed he will be only a fraction of the dog that I really want. If we don't succeed I will feel that I have let him down because he will not be able to come out into the woods with me nearly as often. If he is prone to making a noise, or will not be still or simply doesn't show any ability in scenting the deer, then we will both miss out on truly fulfilling our sporting ambitions. For me, working with the dog is every bit as fulfilling and enjoyable as the hunting itself.

So, has he got it in him? As I type this the adolescent lunatic is chewing on an already burst football outside in his pen. He is constantly tormenting the old warhorse Maximus, who nevertheless is still top dog when it really matters. However, lunatic or not, he certainly has the latent ability to be truly wonderful. I can already tell by his body language whether he is on to a pheasant, woodcock, rabbit or deer, and his pointing ability is outstanding: he goes into leopard crawl as soon as a bird is located, then, if it does not fly he turns and locks into position just a few yards from the quarry, front paw raised, eyes fixed in a laser beam stare. Very impressive to see and hugely enjoyable for us both when I send him in and have the bird fly off through the woods; the woodcock jinking its way at low level through the tree foliage, the pheasant rising powerfully amid a clatter of wings and the iconic call of the fleeing cock bird. Not sure who enjoys it more.

He is best on the deer though. Last time out he took me straight to a couple of beasts, then laid flat as I did the leopard crawling forward. It took 5 minutes before I could take the shot and the pup didn't twitch for the whole time, his head remaining firmly on the ground. At the rifle report he walked up to me so I took him back and laid him down again all nice and calmly. As I began the approach to the fallen animal another appeared which Gunnar saw. I sat him down with a hand signal, crawled in to position again and took a second shot. On looking back to see his reaction, he hadn't moved, and his eyes were fixed on me, awaiting instruction. Outstanding!

Then on the way home he put up another beast and began chasing it through the woods. Just to keep me humble! He turned off on the command, but it is clear he is not altogether trained yet. Does that detract from my enjoyment of him, or from his accomplishments? Of course not. He is a work in progress.

As are we all.

I am delighted with him.

As is our Creator as we seek to please Him, and He never gives up on training us, for our benefit and for His glory. He likes spending time with us too, even more than I enjoy spending time with the pup!

Are we actually allowed to enjoy it?

I don't go in for new year resolutions. I cannot recall a time when I did. I do like to reflect on what has happened over the past months as a means of spring-boarding me forward towards the next stage of my life, or at least the next project that might come my way. The past few months have been very eventful, and for the most part exceptionally enjoyable and fulfilling. Those of you that follow my exploits here will be aware of some of the events of the past year in this minister's varied life, but to precis my career over 2013 it looked something like this:

• preaching at our little church, Windermere Community Church and trying to pastor the little flock under my care.
• freelance outdoor instructing, including mountain walking, rock climbing, abseiling, ghyll scrambling (that's canyoning to my colonial colleagues!) and bushcraft.
• Deer stalking. Maintaining a healthy population of Roe and Red deer on two estates, taking out an occasional client and training Gunnar, my German Wirehaired Pointer pup as a specialist deer dog. I will write some "parables of Gunnar" over the coming weeks and months all being well.
• Bible teaching. At Capernwray Hall. This year I was involved in their "Impact" week and taught on the first 9 chapters of the book of Romans to around 50 young adults (18-25 year olds). A great time was had by all. Well, I enjoyed it.
• Employed work at a local Tree Top Adventure company. This is a really fun day out for families and groups, or even as an individual. I was part of a tremendous team of enthusiastic instructors and managers and hope to be a part of the team this year as well.
• Writing. Preparing to do another book this year and have recently joined the team of contributors for Our Daily Journal. This is a daily devotional for those who want to dig into the Bible a little more than just the basics. I'm very excited about this opportunity.
• Chaplain to the local Air Training Corps. I get to play non-combatant soldier (well, airman actually) for a squadron of young people aged between 13 and 19. It is enormous fun and a great opportunity to help develop young people in all kinds of ways. I have to resist my desire to take weapons training and unfortunately am not even allowed to wear "greens" (that's camouflage or DPM to those of you not au fait with the lingo).

There is more that has been going on, including taking school assemblies as a local minister and a trip to the French Alps last September which was outstanding, but it is clear that life has been anything but mundane. 

My problem, which I am sure is not only my own, is that as a minister I am called to be about God's business; that is, preaching His word, shepherding His flock, living a life pleasing to Him, and talking to those who do not know Him in a way that will help them move towards a faith in Jesus Christ. All of this is extremely important, very burdensome and must be approached with enormous sobriety. It must not be taken lightly. Ever. And I agree with that statement entirely.

And yet I spent a very large portion of last year, in all of my different guises, laughing my head off, sometimes giddy with excitement.

Is this allowed? Is my role not far too important to laugh and joke about?

What a twit. The best way I can convince people that Christianity is real, relevant and personal, is by living life fully, as He intended. That includes enjoying the wonderful variation He has given to me, and allowing myself the freedom to be me within all those roles and situations.

I actually forgot about that for a while; for a few years actually. The "having fun" bit. Just thought I ought to write that down in case there were some of you out there who weren't allowing yourselves to enjoy your Christian life because the task is just too serious, or perhaps you have rejected all this religious nonsense because folks who are into it seem so frightfully dull all the time!

Sometimes this walk can be hard work, really hard work. Sometimes it's like this:

or this:

or this!

And we are allowed, nay commanded to enjoy it. What's not to enjoy? I have so much to be thankful for. I hope that I express my gratitude best by receiving and relishing in all His goodness to me, whether the experience is good, bad or just the ordinary day-to-day!