As I mentioned in my previous post, I have taken on a new
role of becoming a responsible gun owner and user. The first step was getting to the range and
actually shooting the gun.
A local range in the area offers Ladies Days on Friday. My husband jumped at this opportunity. He got off work in the early afternoon, came
home, loaded the guns, me and our son into the van and set off for our
afternoon adventure.
We get to the range, check-in, and I picked out my gear: my
paper target, a set of “ears” (ear protection) and my eye protection. There were some strict rules around the shop,
which I liked, and now I entered the actual range. This particular range has two separate
rooms. I had to walk through the first
one to get to the second one which had the lane we were assigned. Walking through room one was enough to scare
the stuff out of me. I could feel each
gun shot through my entire body. I was
literally walking on bullet casings and the sound was deafening. AND I HAD ON MY EARS!!
Upon entering room two, I calmed down. It was much quieter in there – for a few
moments. Then the one other person in
the room shot a 45. When the ‘boom’ went
off, I think I may have peed my pants just a little bit. (If that was TMI for you, sorry; but I am
being very real here.)
At this point, I realized I was either going to completely
freak out and run away (my usual response to any stressful situation) or I was
going to remember all that I had learned in the past years about facing my
fears and doing what I needed to do. My
purpose for being there was very important.
I took a deep breath and walked to our lane.
Shan showed me how to load the gun, switch the safety and
release the clip. I asked him to fire
the gun so I could hear how it sounded to be a bit more prepared. He did.
Then he reloaded the 22, handed it to me and said, “Your turn.”
This was it. I was going to fire a gun for the very first
time. I was doing it. I never thought I would do it. But I am holding the gun. I am raising the gun. I aimed at the target. I fired.
I hit the target.
When I had shot three rounds, I felt finished for the
day. I need to do it some more but it
was enough to get me comfortable to use the gun. I stood and watched my boy take aim. He is a very good shot. Shan said I did very well for my first time –
I did not miss the target. However, I
was not quite ready to fire the 45. I
finally got use to the one going off next to me, but I did not feel ready to
fire my own. It was not fear that
stopped me, but a healthy understanding on my part that I needed to do one step
at a time. For now, I have the 22 in my
possession. Soon, in the next month or
so, I will go shoot the 45. I will be
ready then.
So for all you newbies out there – be forewarned. The shooting range is very intense! But hang in there! It does get better. Remember your purpose, take it one step at a
time, and pray hard. Don’t let fear take
over. For a few brief moments, I thought
mine would. I am so thankful it
didn’t. In the past, I would have cried
like crazy. Shan did tell me my face
looked panicked for a few moments. I can
see how I would have looked that way. The
realization of what was happening was intense.
The presence of my heavenly Father to comfort me was also there. It was more powerful than any weapon.
When was the last time you felt God’s comfort over you? For me, on most days, it is in the
quiet/small areas of my life. On this
particular day at the range, it was HUGE. Two weeks ago, it was huge again as I fervently
prayed over the lives of four firefighters being held hostage. I was
also praying for the SWAT team going in to rescue the firemen. They had weapons. They used them. They were successful. God was with them.
And now I am singing a song in my head from when my kids
were little.
God is bigger than the
boogie man.
He’s bigger than
Godzilla or the monsters on TV
Oh, God is bigger than
the boogie man
and he watches over
you and me!
May you feel his peace and comfort today and every day. His peace is very real!
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