I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will counsel you with My eye upon you. Be not like a horse or mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you. (vs. 8-9)
This morning was distressing for someone I love so much. Too many leaves on the path in front of her to see the sidewalk. Too many voices in her head screaming her inadequacies. Hope hanging by a thread because her vision was trying either to focus too far down the path or see clearly the foggy moment. She needed counsel. How she should go. What her way is. Her Father has His eye on her. He thinks about her way. He knows it intimately from start to finish. Her job. Listen with understanding (which also comes from Him....doesn't everything good?)
The alternative is to be like a mule, stubbornly resisting coming to her master because she doesn't know why He is asking her to in the first place. Would rather chew on the grass (or smoke it) in the corner of the corral which has become comfortable to her. If the master comes near, she might kick, bray or balk. He wants to lead the stupid mule to better pasture, but she won't let him near her. So, because the master cares about this mule he bought, he bridles her and reins her in and makes her obey for her good and his purposes.
I love that there are so many wonderful passages about animals in the Bible. Here are a few:
You are like a she-camel in mating season that runs from place to place. You are like a wild donkey that lives in the desert and sniffs the wind at mating time. At that time, who can hold her back? (Jeremiah 2)
Israel has become like a pigeon - easy to fool and stupid. ... Israel is like a wild donkey all by itself. (Hosea 7 and 8)
The people of Israel are stubborn like a stubborn young cow. (Hosea 4)
A beautiful woman without good sense is like a gold ring in a pig's snout. (Proverbs 11)
Each person goes his own way, like a horse charging in battle. Even the birds in the sky know the right times to do things. The storks, doves, swifts, and thrushes know when it is time to migrate. My people don't know what the Lord wants them to do. (Jeremiah 8)
"Do not be afraid, even though you are as weak as a worm. I, Myself, will help you," says the Lord. (Isaiah 41)
A fool who repeats his foolishness is like a dog that goes back to what it has thrown up. (Proverbs 26)
"So, I tell you, don't worry about the food or drink you need to live, or about the clothes you need for your body. Look at the birds of the air. They don't plant or harvest or store food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. And you know you are worth more than birds. You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it." Jesus (Matthew 6)
"O, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!" Jesus (Luke 13)
God will save you from hidden traps and from deadly diseases. He will cover you with His feathers, and under his wings you can hide. (Psalm 91)
But why are people important to You? Why do You care for human beings? You made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You put them in charge of everything You made. You put all things under their control: all the sheep, the cattle, and the wild animals, the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea, and everything that lives under the water." (Psalm 8)
Our God reserves the dignity of humanity for His creation. His greatest desire is that we come willfully and obediently to Him, be covered with His wings, nestled under His feathers, safe and at peace because the Lord God, our Father, knows our way.
This morning was distressing for someone I love so much. Too many leaves on the path in front of her to see the sidewalk. Too many voices in her head screaming her inadequacies. Hope hanging by a thread because her vision was trying either to focus too far down the path or see clearly the foggy moment. She needed counsel. How she should go. What her way is. Her Father has His eye on her. He thinks about her way. He knows it intimately from start to finish. Her job. Listen with understanding (which also comes from Him....doesn't everything good?)
The alternative is to be like a mule, stubbornly resisting coming to her master because she doesn't know why He is asking her to in the first place. Would rather chew on the grass (or smoke it) in the corner of the corral which has become comfortable to her. If the master comes near, she might kick, bray or balk. He wants to lead the stupid mule to better pasture, but she won't let him near her. So, because the master cares about this mule he bought, he bridles her and reins her in and makes her obey for her good and his purposes.
I love that there are so many wonderful passages about animals in the Bible. Here are a few:
You are like a she-camel in mating season that runs from place to place. You are like a wild donkey that lives in the desert and sniffs the wind at mating time. At that time, who can hold her back? (Jeremiah 2)
Israel has become like a pigeon - easy to fool and stupid. ... Israel is like a wild donkey all by itself. (Hosea 7 and 8)
The people of Israel are stubborn like a stubborn young cow. (Hosea 4)
A beautiful woman without good sense is like a gold ring in a pig's snout. (Proverbs 11)
Each person goes his own way, like a horse charging in battle. Even the birds in the sky know the right times to do things. The storks, doves, swifts, and thrushes know when it is time to migrate. My people don't know what the Lord wants them to do. (Jeremiah 8)
"Do not be afraid, even though you are as weak as a worm. I, Myself, will help you," says the Lord. (Isaiah 41)
A fool who repeats his foolishness is like a dog that goes back to what it has thrown up. (Proverbs 26)
"So, I tell you, don't worry about the food or drink you need to live, or about the clothes you need for your body. Look at the birds of the air. They don't plant or harvest or store food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. And you know you are worth more than birds. You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it." Jesus (Matthew 6)
"O, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!" Jesus (Luke 13)
God will save you from hidden traps and from deadly diseases. He will cover you with His feathers, and under his wings you can hide. (Psalm 91)
But why are people important to You? Why do You care for human beings? You made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You put them in charge of everything You made. You put all things under their control: all the sheep, the cattle, and the wild animals, the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea, and everything that lives under the water." (Psalm 8)
Our God reserves the dignity of humanity for His creation. His greatest desire is that we come willfully and obediently to Him, be covered with His wings, nestled under His feathers, safe and at peace because the Lord God, our Father, knows our way.
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