Life
is hard. Sometimes things happen that
are beyond our control. How do we
respond? Death and change are
difficult. We are suddenly hurled into
something we don’t want to think about right now and forced into decisions we
would rather not make. Some of us may
vent our feelings or appreciate a shoulder to cry on. Then there are some of us who would much
rather like to be alone or wish we could just run away from it all—stick our
head in a hole or move to Montana. I’m
learning that running isn’t always the best option and sometimes confiding in a
person I trust can be good—even when it seems to be going against my nature.
A walk through a dew laden pasture
on a quiet misty morning pursuing an exuberant pony caused me to stop and
think. As I pondered and fumed over my
predicament with halter in hand and horses about a quarter mile away, I began
to think how much better it would be if they would just stay and wait for
me. It just created more problems for
them and me when they ran away. Once
again, the horses appeared through the early morning fog, and God seemed to be
using the “innocent” face of that pony staring warily at me to point at my own
life. “You know you can’t really run away, just like the pony can’t because
of the fence around this pasture. You
want to be free and run away from what you think are problems, when really they
are my tools to make you into who I want you to be. It will just create more problems for you and
those around you if you try to run away.”
I sighed with relief and smiled with satisfaction as the pony approached
me, licking and chewing. The pony
stepped lightly after me as we now walked together towards home.
As I write this, I am reminded of
Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God…” Leaving is not always the solution to our
problems, unless it’s at the direction of God.
If we trust in the Lord, He will give us the courage, strength,
patience, endurance, and peace to face the challenges of life and make us more
like Christ. Life is hard, but God is
good.
