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Chester County Press

Author encourages sportsmen to strengthen friendships and families

03/15/2022 02:57PM ● By Richard Gaw

Photo by Richard L. Gaw        Best-selling author and musician Steve Chapman was the featured speaker at the Christian Life Center Outdoorsman Ministry Group’s annual dinner, held March 12 at the Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Landenberg.


By Richard L. Gaw

Staff Writer

The Cornerstone Presbyterian Church in Landenberg was the scene of long tables of crock pots filled with venison stew and venison chili on March 12, as more than 150 sportsmen and their families attended the Christian Life Center Outdoorsman Ministry Group’s annual dinner that was highlighted by a performance by best-selling author and musician Steve Chapman.

During his introductory remarks, Chapman, 71, told the audience that he realizes that “there are fewer days ahead of me than there are behind me,” and in light of that realization, he encouraged the audience to “finish well” by building faithful friendships and faithful relationships with family members.

“There are a couple of ways that you can cultivate friendships – through your words and what you say to one another,” he said. “There’s a familiar proverb that says, ‘A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold and settings of silver.’”

Using a Biblical reference, Chapman encouraged the audience to help one another.

“There may be friends here tonight, and one of you may be paralyzed by life or by some challenge you are going through, and it’s your friend’s faith that you need,” he said. “Two people can accomplish so much more than one.”

A popular speaker and performer at outdoorsman events around the U.S., Chapman is the author of the best-selling book A Look At Life From A Deer Stand: Hunting For The Meaning of Life – which has sold over 300,000 copies – as well as Another Look At Life From the Deer Stand; A Hunter Sets His Sights; Great Hunting Stories; With God On A Deer Hunt, With Dad on a Deer Stand and Tales Hunters Tell.

Chapman, who is also a singer, songwriter and recording artist, complimented his message with songs on guitar that called attention to the importance of friendship and the expression of love between a father and a child. He spoke about the many experiences he has enjoyed hunting, fishing, bicycling and hiking with his son and daughter.

“When you take a kid into the outdoors you take away their excuse for understanding that there is a creator,” he said. “You get to take them into that environment where there are so many spiritual lessons to be learned. The other benefit of taking kids into the outdoors is to [experience] the conversations that can happen.

“To help you finish well, keep this in mind when you’re out there with them: Sometimes, things will be said that really need to be said, and sometimes things will be said that really need to be heard.”

During his introduction of Chapman, Christian Life Center Outdoorsman Ministry Group leader Steve Shuster described Chapman as a husband, father, a man of God and a lover of the outdoors.

“I guess what I appreciate most about Steve is just how real and authentic he is,” Shuster told the audience. “I am happy that I have had a chance to get to know him and that you will also get a chance to know him tonight.”

The Christian Life Center Outdoorsman Ministry Group is a non-profit organization dedicated to providing fun and fellowship for outdoor sports enthusiasts. The event, which also included raffles, display vendors, door prizes and a silent auction, was its first since 2019.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email [email protected].