Today's Photograph: Easter Sunrise (RR)
Bible Study Verse
Matthew 28:1-7
After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they became like dead men.

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples; 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."

John 3:16
For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (NIV)

Thoughts
It's Easter--the truest evidence of God's love for us that ever was or could be. I can hardly imagine the scene: a violent earthquake, an angel appearing, the stone being rolled away, being told to not be afraid. Don't be afraid...Yeah, uh huh...right. I would have been afraid. Look at the tough guy Roman guards (the Delta Force of their day)--they became like dead men! But, amazingly, these two women don't faint or collapse in fear, as do the guards. They listened to the first post-crucifixion testimony given of Jesus' resurrection. They were told to go tell the disciples. The disciples were told to go tell the world. We've been told to share the good news. Jesus has risen; Jesus has risen indeed! Praise God, He has risen! Because Jesus rose from the grave, we can have the hope of rising from the "grave" of our sins. We can have eternal life, and we can know that we will spend that eternity in heaven with Jesus. Only believe!

Now, how many times have you heard someone say that they don't believe that a loving God would condemn anyone to an eternity in hell? Well, guess what; they're right! God doesn't condemn us, we do that to ourselves by the choice of unbelief. Through Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection, God has provided the way for us to avoid hell. Just as we would do anything to prevent our own children from experiencing pain, God went so far to prevent our winding up in hell as to send His only Son to die for us. Would I ask my son to die for me? No! Would I send my son to die for you? I don't think so! But God didn't hold anything back--He gave the ultimate sacrifice of His only Son so that we could be saved and be with Him forever. He truly is a loving God! He offered us both forgiveness and hope on the first Easter morning. But, as Jesus was given a choice to be obedient unto death, He has given us the choice to believe or not. Choose to believe. Thank you, Father! (CS)

Action Point
Believe in Jesus-today. Accept His gift of salvation. Pray and ask Jesus to come into your heart and to forgive you of your sins. Be assured of His gift of eternal life!
If you prayed that prayer today, seek out other believers and find a Bible-teaching church where you can grow in your faith and in God's love. And, let us know here at Sportsmen's Devotional so that we can rejoice with you and pray for you.


 
Sportsmen's Tip of the Day
Listen and learn from experienced hunters and fishermen. There may come a day when you encounter a situation where someone else's experience or suggestion may keep you out of a tough situation.

THE OLD FISHERMAN    
Our house was directly across the street from the clinic entrance of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore .  We lived downstairs and rented the upstairs rooms to out-patients at the Clinic. 

 One summer evening as I was fixing supper, there was a knock at the door I  opened it to see a truly awful looking man. 'Why, he's hardly taller than my eight-year-old, ' I thought as I stared at the stooped, shriveled body. 
But the appalling thing was his face, lopsided from swelling, red and raw, yet his voice was pleasant as he said, 'Good evening. I've come to see if you've a room for just one night. I came for a treatment this morning from the  eastern shore, and there's no bus 'till morning.' 

He told me he'd  been hunting for a room since noon but with no success; no one seemed to have a room. 'I guess it's my face. I know it looks terrible, but my doctor says with a few more treatments.. ' 
For a moment I hesitated, but his  next words convinced me: 'I could sleep in this rocking chair on the porch. My bus leaves early in the morning.' I told him we would find him a bed, but to rest on the porch.  I went inside and finished getting  supper. When we were ready, I asked the old man if he would join us. 'No thank you. I have plenty' And he held up a brown paper bag. 

When I  had finished the dishes, I went out on the porch to talk with him a few minutes. It didn't take a long time to see that this old man had an oversized heart crowded into that tiny body. He told me he fished for a living to support his daughter, her five children and her husband, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury. 

He didn't tell it by way of complaint; in fact, every other sentence was prefaced with thanks to God for a blessing. He was grateful that no pain accompanied his disease, which was apparently a form of skin cancer. He thanked God for giving him the strength to keep going. 

At bedtime, we put a camp cot in the children's room for him. When I got up in the morning, the bed linens were neatly folded, and the little man was out on the porch. 

He refused breakfast, but just before he left for his bus, haltingly, as if asking a great favor, he said, 
'Could I please come back and stay the next time I have a treatment? I won't put you out a bit. I can sleep fine in a chair.' He paused a moment and then added, 'Your children made me feel at home. Grownups are bothered by my face, but children don't seem to mind.' I told him he was welcome to come again. 

And on his next trip he arrived a little after seven in the morning. As a gift, he brought a big fish and a quart of the largest oysters I had ever seen. He said he had shucked them that morning before he left so that they'd be nice and fresh. I knew his bus left at 4 a.m. , and I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us. 

In the years he came to stay overnight with us there was never a time that he did not bring us fish or oysters or vegetables from his garden.   

Other times we received packages in the mail, always by special delivery; fish and oysters packed in a box of fresh young spinach or kale, every leaf carefully washed. Knowing that he must walk three miles to mail these and knowing how little money he had made the gifts doubly precious.     

When I received these little remembrances, I often thought of a comment our next-door neighbor made after he left that first morning.   'Did you keep that awful looking man last night? I turned him away! You can lose roomers by putting up such people!' 

Maybe we did lose roomers once or twice But, oh! If only they could have known him, perhaps their  illness would have been easier to bear. I know our family always will be grateful to have known him; from him we learned what it was to accept the bad without complaint and the good with gratitude to God. 

Recently I  was visiting a friend who has a greenhouse. As she showed me her flowers, we came to the most beautiful one of all, a golden chrysanthemum, bursting with blooms. But to my great surprise, it was growing in an old dented, rusty bucket. I thought to myself, 'If this were my plant, I'd put it in the loveliest container I had!' 

My friend changed my mind. 'I ran short of pots,' she explained, 'and knowing how beautiful this one would be, I  thought it wouldn't mind starting out in this old pail. It's just for a little while, till I can put it out in the garden.' 

She must have wondered why I laughed so delightedly, but I was imagining just such a scene in heaven. There's an especially beautiful one,' God might have said when he  came to the soul of the sweet old fisherman. 'He won't mind starting in this small body.' 

All this happened long ago -- and now, in God's garden, how tall this lovely soul must stand. 

The LORD does not look at the things man looks at.  Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.' 

Friends are very special. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed.  They lend an ear and they share a word of  praise.
Show your friends how much you care.