A Hunter’s Healing - Guest Post by Shane Stiffler
You see, God is always pursuing us. Always ready, willing to accept us when we are ready to turn away from ourselves.
By the grace of God may I always honor, thank and adore the Lord God who created the animals and saw that each species was good. Let me love the God who made humans in His own image and likeness and set them over the whole world, to have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth (Gen 1:26). By my honorable conduct as a hunter let me give a good example and teach new hunters principles of honor, so that each new generation can show respect for God, other hunters and the animals, and enjoy the dignity of the hunt.
Prayer to be an honorable hunter
Foreword by Frederick Smith
We live in a fallen world, and in recent years, depravity has taken center stage in virtually every segment of society. Hostility towards God and those who worship him following the genuine precepts of the written Word permeates the social realm. But God knows, and He will judge. Despite the bad, there is good. We hear many stories of events that can only be explained as Supernaturally based.
With the above backdrop, my friend Shane Stiffler shared the following true story from the 2022 Christmas season. Here’s the account in Shane’s own words.
A Hunter’s Healing
Have you ever experienced God? Can I borrow your time for just a few minutes? This [2022] Christmas season, my family prays your heart and your life be impacted and changed forever by something much more significant than ourselves.
I experienced one of the scariest moments in my life to date. My 32-year-old brother fell nearly 20 feet while climbing into his tree stand. His feet were likely 20 feet off the ground, placing his head about 26 feet off the ground. I was approximately 70 yards away when I heard the branch he grabbed to pull himself onto the stand, snap and give way. The following two sounds were like a tree falling, then a screaming I hope never to hear again.
We were in the woods, on top of a mountain, but We Were Not Alone! I could call 911 and tell them where we were, how to get to us, and that we would need a utility vehicle to get him out. The Galliztin EMS and Ashville Volunteer Fire Department were prompt, professional, and swift in action and got him to the hospital. When I got to him, he told me that he could not feel anything from the waist down
A lot went on in that 1 hour and 10 minutes, but I can tell you one thing I remember vividly: Peace. He was in extreme pain. He was begging God not to let him be paralyzed. Shortly after I hung up with 911, I knelt beside him, placed my hand on his midsection, and prayed; he prayed to God, and let me tell it again, We Were Not Alone. Shortly after praying, Tyler stated he was able to wiggle his toes.1
The hospital found that he had fractured his L2 vertebrae, and several small pieces were pressed into his nerves. The very nerves control a lot of your body’s motion. Two days after the incident, Dr. Burke at UPMC performed a remarkable surgery, and I pray God will forever bless that man for his hands and talents here on earth.
Three days after surgery, he went on to physical therapy. During two days at physical therapy, he WALKED TWO LAPS around the building; after five days at rehab, they released him to go home, and he WALKED out of the building on his own. Today he got the go-ahead that he can drive. Seventeen days after he fell 20 feet and 15 days after major back surgery, he was cleared to drive.
Folks, we serve an extraordinary God. Throughout this story, I hope two things caught your attention. We Were Never Alone and the word Peace. We Are Never Alone. There is no doubt this experience was a revelation to Tyler. A forever life-changing experience. And you could have one too. (Not falling out of a tree, of course). You see, God is always pursuing us. Always ready and willing to accept us when we are prepared to turn away from ourselves. The Bible says We Are Saved by the Blood of the Lamb and the Word of our Testimony. Our testimony. Our story. You have a story. We all do.
It is pretty simple yet significant. We are called to confess our sins. Acknowledge Jesus as our Lord and Savior and invite him into our life. If this is something that strikes a cord with you, reach out. I don’t have all the answers, but I can point you to Jesus. I promise you, it won’t be all roses and sunshine, but I can guarantee you will never be alone, and you WILL experience peace.
Please continue to read; don’t stop here. Some reading this may immediately ask, how can I get my revelation? How can I experience God? Do you want to know how? The easiest way I have experienced it is by serving others. Yes, we are all busy, and I’m not talking about jobs helping others. I mean, serve others expecting nothing in return. No payment in return. You want to experience God, I promise you, you won’t be disappointed.
One last thing for those struggling to read this! I get it. You ask, where was God when.... fill in the blank. Where was God when I lost my son..when my uncle died unexpectedly? When my sister got so sick and died. When I tell you I get it, I mean it; I get it. I had an Aunt in her early 40s with four sons, who died of cancer, then one of her sons, within the same year, a young man died from a gunshot wound. I also had a teenage cousin who died from Ketoacidosis. All of them prayed and begged God for their life. I get it. If I had the answers, then I would be God, but I don’t, and I believe one day we will all get those answers when our time to know is right. But that anger, sadness, and resentment are not what you were designed to live with and/or in. We were all created to experience and live with the fruits of the spirit, love, peace, joy, kindness, goodness, gentleness... And I can promise you that you can and will experience all of them with God.
All of us close to this know just how many different avenues this could have gone. Just look up tree stand accident stories. But this story we know to be a blessing from God. And we praise Him for it. It may be the reason for this story—the person reading this who’s on the fence about God. Jump in. Jump all in.
I pray that all those reading this will experience God this holiday season. There’s so much going on in this world, but I know this for a fact...our time here is short. Go Love and Serve others as we are made to do. Amen and Amen! Praise God for Tyler’s healing and progress thus far, and thank you all for your prayers! God heard every single one of them. Please continue to pray for his recovery. 📕
It wasn't until weeks later that we rehashed the events that occurred that day. During this conversation, we were given a revelation of what truly occurred when I laid my hand on him, and we prayed. We both knew at that moment we were truly blessed to be witnesses of the power of prayer.
A Hunter’s Healing - Guest Post by Shane Stiffler
FOR THOSE WHO DON'T DO TWITTER https://truthpress.com/news/watch-prayer-breaks-out-after-trump-makes-unexpected-stop-at-south-carolina-burger-shop/
Excellent post. However, when I got to the part about the accident, it was a deja vu moment! When I was 20, I was hunting with a friend on his property. We had each built tree stands. His was in a tree on a steep hill. Shortly after it got light, he came walking toward my stand with a strange look on his face. He apparently got to the top step, it broke, and he fell backwards about 20 ft down the hill. The back of his head was bleeding. We jumped in my Bronco and sped to the hospital. Got pulled over for speeding and when I explained what happened got a 90MPH police escort in the pouring rain. He ended up with a concussion. What saved him evidently was he still had his rifle on his shoulder which plowed into the ground first, since the barrel tip was almost even with his head. His dad went to clean the rifle and found a chunk of wood lodged in the barrel.