July 10, 2018

Are You Following Jesus?

“The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.”

– John 10:3-4

Several years ago my Dad planted rye grass in the pecan orchard. He would allow the cows access only an hour or so a day. This was to keep them from getting sick by eating too much of a good thing.

One day we came home and found the cows in the front pasture. He wanted to bring them around to the rye grass field. He talked about using feed to entice them around. He wondered aloud if he could somehow drive them to the correct area.

I was astounded at the obstacles he thought he needed to overcome. I shook my head and told him to go open the gate and I would get the cows around. He didn’t believe me but headed toward the gate anyway.

I went to the front gate and started calling the cows. I called them by name. I called them babies. I did what any pet parent does: I talked in a sweet voice. First one and then another raised their heads. I patiently called them again to come on. In a few minutes the entire herd was coming at a brisk pace.

I turned to find my Dad standing there with his mouth open, totally amazed that I hadn’t even needed to go into the pasture to bring the cows around to the correct area. Why did they come when I called them? Because they knew my voice. They knew that I was calling them to something good. They trusted that there was something wonderful at the end of their journey.

Jesus calls us in much the same way. We can ignore Him. We can do our own thing and miss the blessings He offers. Or we can choose to follow His call and end our days with more than we could ever imagine.

Don’t let the world distract you. Don’t listen to voices who claim to know the way and yet only offer worldly things as a reward. You’re not here to stay. You’re just a traveler headed home. Don’t let anyone focus your attention elsewhere.

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

– John 10:27

Do you hear His voice? Are you following Jesus or the world? Don’t be so quick to answer. Think about it.

Every single day we make choice after choice after choice. All those choices come with consequences. Are those choices drawing you nearer to Jesus or are they drawing you nearer to the world?

If you know Jesus, follow Him. He will always lead you to something better than you could ever imagine.

And if you don’t know Jesus, take a moment to think about all the wonderful blessings you are missing. He’s standing at the gate to let you in. You only have to believe and trust that He truly will lead you home.

June 17, 2018

God Always Helps Us

The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me? The LORD is with me; he is my helper.

– Psalm 118:6-7a

I was beginning to think she was never going to have that calf. Until she did. Naturally, being a new mother and a little bit unsure of it all, she forgot where she’d left it. And, naturally, she expected me to locate the tiny little bundle of joy.

At first, she believed she’d left the calf in the area we call the branch. It’s an overgrown section that borders one side of the pond. It houses two streams and all the runoff from a nearby highway. Did I mention it is also the home of moccasins? I am terrified of snakes.

I do some of my best praying when duty calls me to that area of the farm. I rarely see a snake until after it has seen me. If I’m to avoid a close encounter, it is up to God to protect me. I’ve flunked that test too many times to count. It is all on His shoulders. I repeatedly remind Him of this as I go through the area.

That’s the thing about God: He never leaves us alone. He’s my constant companion and my very best friend. He always has time to listen and provide help. Searching for a newborn calf is like trying to find that needle in a haystack. I’m sure you’ve heard that cliché. And God was right there with me during every terrifying step.

As it happens, the calf wasn’t in the branch. Nor was he in the upper pasture as the cow next believed. She stood there bellowing, beyond distraught. I wanted desperately to remind her that a good mother wouldn’t have left her newborn calf alone. I didn’t. She was upset enough without my input.

I wonder if God thinks that about us sometimes. Does He ever look down at His distraught children begging for His help and want to remind us that we’re in that predicament because we made a bad choice? How frustrated God must get with us.

Of course, God never turns us away. He may let us learn a hard lesson but He stays right beside us on the journey. God always helps us make a better choice. If we’ll listen.

I didn’t abandon the desperate cow either. Her baby calf emerged and he and I headed across the pasture toward his still bellowing mama. She was so full of anguish that she refused to see him toddling toward her.

Finally, she quieted down and gave a low call. The baby hurried forward and started sucking. She wasn’t overly happy about that and danced around a bit. But the baby was determined and, well, she knew it was the right thing to do. I watched, glaring occasionally, to make sure the baby got plenty of nourishment.

Afterwards, the baby toddled around and she followed, occasionally glancing longingly at the cows on the other side of the property. I knew she’s end up repeating the same mistake, leaving her baby so she could rejoin the herd. Some of us are like that. We need to make the same mistake again and again before we finally learn the lesson God wants to teach us.

I drove mama and baby around to the herd. And then I shut the gate. I didn’t want a repeat the next day.

Sometimes God does that for us. He blocks us from making the same mistake again, teaching us to rely on His wisdom until we can grow enough in faith to make wiser choices. Through it all, God remains steadfast. He is our helper. He is the One who loves us enough to never give up, no matter how many times we take a wrong turn.

April 30, 2018

Embrace the New Day

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! – 2 Corinthians 5:17

Blackie has a new calf this morning. A new life to celebrate even as we mourn the life that was lost last Saturday.

Nothing can change the past. We can cling to it. We can get so caught up in what-ifs that we miss this new beginning. Or we can move forward, with the lessons of yesterday tucked in our heart, cherishing this new opportunity.

Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. You’ve probably heard that old cliché many times. It doesn’t lesson the truth that it holds. We can’t go back and rewrite history. We can only go forward from this day, living a different life with renewed hope and purpose.

It’s not an easy journey. Don’t let anyone tell you it is. The past can leave painful scars that keep us from trusting, from hoping, from believing that today and all the todays to come will be different. But we can take a deep breath and step into the new life God is calling us to embrace.

We walk by faith. We know that. There are no guarantees that today won’t bring heartbreak. There are no protections from evil except for the strength of Christ that lives within us. He promises to never leave us alone. He guarantees that victory is found in His arms. But sometimes the journey hurts.

Have you made mistakes? We all have. Have you been hurt by people you trusted? We all have. Have you felt the sting of lies and accusations that bore no truth? We all have. But we don’t have to live amidst the rubbish. We can rise above it and move into the plans God has called us to, the good plans He has promised.

It’s easy to get caught up in the what-ifs. It’s easy to want retribution, vindication, revenge on those who did us wrong. It’s easy to want to rewrite the past. But it isn’t what God wants. Revenge belongs to Him. God is clear on that. We are to forgive, to do good, and to move on. He’ll take care of the rest.

We can’t move forward, we can’t embrace this new beginning, while we are clinging to the past. We can’t become new while we are dirty from the last skirmish with the devil. We are in a Spiritual War and Satan is trying to control our minds, our thoughts, our hearts. We must resist and cause him to flee. The Bible tells us so.

The new calf is perfect in every way. He is shiny and new as he stumbles into his first steps of life. His mama is ever watchful, ready to assist but knowing she can’t do it for him. God is like that. He watches over us, never leaving us alone. But we have to take those first steps on our own. We have to reach out, grasp His hand, and walk in faith.

Don’t let the past keep you shrouded in darkness. Move forward into the light of a bright new future, a future God has called you to live.

April 28, 2018

God Controls Life and Death

The LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up. – 1 Samuel 2:6

I had done all that I could. It was in God’s hands. That was my last prayer of the night. Whether the little calf lived or died was up to God.

The calf died. I found it early this morning. It hadn’t been dead long. The calf was barely past newborn. She simply failed to thrive and nothing I did helped. Her mama was beyond distraught. There was nothing I could do.

My cousin tells me I get too attached to the cows. He’s right. I know that. But I’ve never reached the point where I can detach and not care. I hope I never do.

We’d like to think we can control the outcome of just about everything. But the truth is we can only do our best and trust God with the rest. That’s true for everyone, including doctors. They do their best and still sometimes death comes.

It’s easy to see God’s power in life and in death. We can’t restore a life that has gone. But God is in control, sitting on His throne, in everything we do. Look around. Can’t you see the evidence of Him? God is everywhere. We need only open our eyes and look.

I take comfort in His Presence on this long hard day, one that followed several long, hard days. When a calf is sick, everything else gets pushed to the back so that I can do all I can to try and save her life.

The same is true with people. When someone you love is sick, suddenly your schedule, your entire life, gets shifted around. Priorities change. Your life becomes hospitals and rehab and home health and doctor appointments. You become well-versed in language you’d never heard before. You pick up on the slightest changes. You have to. Life and death are unforgiving task masters.

I know not everyone sees it this way. Some people barely change anything. They are content to sit back and let someone else do the day to day tasks. They aren’t interested in keeping an all-night vigil or days spent loading and unloading a wheelchair and helping someone get from appointment to appointment.

It’s sad what they miss. There is pain and frustration, inconvenience and loss of income. There are a million different tasks waiting every single day. Juggling becomes a lifestyle. It’s just how it is.

But there is joy too. There is honor in caring for someone you love when they can no longer do it for themselves. There is a painful satisfaction that comes when the day is done and you know that you did all you could. No one can take that from you.

I wanted that little calf to live. She was beautiful and sweet and I wanted her to grow up and have babies of her own. God had a different plan. I’ve come to accept that sometimes death comes no matter how hard we try to prevent it. God is in control. I love and trust His Holy Name. On sad days like this, that really is all that matters.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Animals Teach Us So Much

“Ask the animals and they will teach you. Ask the birds of the sky, and they will tell you.” -- Job 12:7

The newborn black calf was lost. He didn’t know where his mama was. He didn’t even know for sure who his mama was. He only knew he was hungry and standing in mud and water.

So I reached down and rubbed him. He leaned against me. I comforted him as best I could. Then we headed toward his mama -- and his twin. This new mama was overwhelmed. She understood that she had two babies. I was thankful for that. But she didn’t know what to do with one, much less two.

I asked God to please help us get the mama and her two babies around to a pen. He did. I tried to give the little one who got lost a bottle. It didn’t work out too well. His mama appeared to step on him just before that. She’s didn’t mean to. I pray she didn’t hurt him. I finally left the little family, with plenty of food and water for mama.

Some things are just in God’s hands. I know my heart will break if the little calf doesn’t make it. But I also know that only God can save him. I can do my part. I can prepare bottles and feed the calves. I can feed their mama. But I can’t make them strong enough to survive. That’s in God’s hands.

“For the life of every living thing is in his hand, and the breath of all humanity.” -- Job 12:10

Animals can teach us so much about life, about dealing with heartache and hope and promise. And animals can teach us how little we really can control about our world and those we love. We are all at God’s mercy. He cares for us and we call out to Him. But the choice is His.

I was tempted to bring this little fellow who needed nourishment to the house with me. I grew up bottle-feeding calves. I know how to do that. I figured he could stay in the backyard with the two dogs. Except our older dog is sick with cancer and I knew she couldn’t handle the added stress of a newborn.

So I chose the needs of one over the needs of another. I wonder how often God has to do that. He cares for all His children but what happens when we both want the same thing and there’s only one thing to go around? He has to choose. How hard that must be, to allow one child’s heart to be broken even as another celebrates.

I am thankful that I don’t have to make the choices that God makes every day. I’m thankful that He is in charge. And I’m so grateful that God will watch over that mama cow and her babies tonight. I pray that He’ll strengthen that little family and that all three will thrive in the coming days. They are in His hands and He cares for them, just as He cares for me and you.