A L. L. Bean Hunting catalog came in today’s mail. It reeks with testosterone. I feel manly just turning the pages and looking at the Labrador Retrievers holding slain ducks in their dripping maws. My credit card wanted to leap from my wallet as I savored the waterproof boots, jackets and GPSs. I imagined sitting in a Massachusetts swamp with my faithful Lab as we filled the air with duck calls designed to lure prey. Of course I would need one of the “Cool Weave Camo Crew” outfits so I would seamlessly blend into the surrounding reeds. I would watch for ducks with my 2800 dollar Swarovski binoculars. Instead of using a shot gun I would use my L. L. Bean bow and arrow and fell those ducks like Native Americans did in my swamp 200 years ago. My primal instincts were honed to an edge as my dog and I patiently waited to slay and retrieve a lesser species. Triumphantly we would take our success home in a four wheel drive pickup truck for my wife to pluck and roast.
It is amazing what happens in my head from merely looking at a catalog. I am not alone. This catalog was masterfully designed to stir such feelings. It almost worked, but I didn’t purchase anything. There is power in the printed page. There is power in our Bibles. As we read stories of Jesus moving through the crowds in Galilee we are moved as we see Him lovingly, powerfully restoring health of body and mind to those He touched. Instead of primal instincts filling us with a desire to kill something we are filled with visions of life – eternal life. There is power in the Word. Don’t leave it on the bedside table gathering dust.
Written by Roger Bothwell on February 26, 2014
Spring of Life, PO Box 124, St. Helena, CA 94574
Rogerbothwell.org