Lesson of the Whales

Most years, the ranch hosts two huge clinic events in April and May, just a couple weeks apart.  They are a BLAST and yet at the end of them the staff is TIRED.  In the few weeks between these clinics, children still come for sessions, the horses still need care, and our normal, pressing responsibilities and the needs of the families who come demand our attention and action.

Personally, I discovered it can take a toll.

Not only do I work on this facility in all the hustle and bustle of activities… I live there.  Many times tourists or strangers stop by on the weekends or when the ranch is closed.  And, the days we’re closed to the public, horses, again, still need feeding and sometimes vetting.  Facilities upkeep and chores still need to be done.  The majority of the staff do not live on-site, so this responsibility falls on a few individuals, such as myself, as part of our agreement to live on the property.

And I LOVE it all.

However, often during the session season I also find my heart, body, and soul simply need a break.  No matter how much I love it, I have to take time to pull back, rest and recharge.  I’ll often do that in the wilderness… or sometimes, at the ocean.

One particular weekend between clinics, my friend and I decided that we just needed to get away — off-site and out of town to disappear for a few days.

So we went to the coast.

Upon arriving at our little beach house motel, I flopped myself on the bed in exhaustion.  The roar of the sea out our window and salty air invited stillness and deep rest.  My friend immediately headed to the beach while I opted for a nap.  The entire trip, I don’t know that I made it outside down to the sandy shore once… I simply rested and slept and journaled, allowing the peaceful atmosphere and sound of the ocean to wash over my weariness.

Sleeping in the next morning — a WONDERFUL luxury — I woke to a clear sky over the bright blue of the water below us.  Our room included a private bedroom, a fold-out couch, and a small kitchen and living room area.  Floor-to-ceiling windows lined the westward wall and painted us an incredible, panoramic view of the Pacific.  Wrapped cozily in a blanket, I sat and watched the waves, silently thanking God for the break and the wonder of His creation.

I’m not sure which of us saw it first, but suddenly an odd, small mist of water spurted from the sea.  We squinted and looked harder.  Another appeared a few minutes later, this time a giant, black body emerged beneath it.  Giddy excitement rushed between us as we realized the wonder before us:

WHALES!

Now, I’ve tried to see whales before, many times, on several different trips.  I’ve sat high on rocky cliffs over deep parts of the ocean and shivered with friends in the wind and ocean spray, followed a map to a specific whale-watching location, and even have stopped at a whale observatory where you are supposed to be able to observe whales.  No whales.  Ever.

Until today… in my pajamas, wrapped in a blanket, with my friend, from the comfort of our living room.  TODAY they appeared.  And they played right in front of us.

The entire rest of the morning, we barely moved from our spot, watching the whales follow each other back and forth — within the frame of our window.  They stayed and played for hours and hours, sinking deep into the sea and rising every few minutes to spout and breathe.  Then it struck me.

God designed whales to live as deep sea creatures, made for the water and dark depths of the ocean… and yet they need to BREATHE.

Might that be a lesson for me?

God designed me — all of us — to navigate and live in this world.  We have deep things we are called to walk through each and every day.  The sea can be fierce… and so can this life.  Like the whales, God’s already given us everything we need to weather the storms and enjoy the wonder of what He has created.

But we need to breathe.

We have GOT to retreat and come up for air.  We can’t stay in the depths for which we were created without daily, routinely, resurfacing for a breath of fresh life from our King.  If we think we can do it on our own, we’re at risk of drowning in our purpose and calling.  We are also called upward — to constantly rise in prayer and thanksgiving and receive the strength to continue on.

Watching the whales rise and fall, I too rose for a breath of air through prayer.  Talking with the King, new waves of peace and assurance, healing and strength flowed over me.   A refreshed, deep longing to return and continue the work placed before me ran like oxygen through my veins.  I felt ready to dive back into ministry.

“Lord Jesus, thank You for the whales, such a magnificent, fun, demonstration of Your glory and power.  Thank You for the rest that You offer me.  Make me faithful to rise moment by moment to receive the life and strength You desire to give for the work You’ve called me to do.  May I learn well the lesson of the whales.”

“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” – Jesus (Matthew 11:28)

 

Heart Declination

Standing on the precipice of a new year, an unknown adventure lies before us.  It’s taken a climb to get this far.  Today I reflect on the summits, valleys, and obstacles beneath me.

Jesus.  How faithful He has been to me.

This last year, He walked me through heartache, led me to my first elk antler find, navigated the conversations I had with so many children to introduce them to HIS presence… and so much more. He was my constant companion in joy and loneliness.

He is teaching me how to run in the wilderness.

I’m learning to navigate the wild.  It’s easy, and sometimes deadly, to get lost in the wilderness.  One needs a good map and compass to stay on course.

And yet, I’ve learned that a compass will not always point true North. A compass will point magnetic North. Depending where you are in the world, because of the gravitational pull of the earth, the compass may be off by up to 30 degrees.

It’s not enough to have a map and a compass.  One can still get desperately lost. You have to know how to use them.

The answer is simple. On backcountry maps, a little compass-like stamp on the map will tell you where your compass wants to point – and where true North actually is. If you take just a moment to adjust the setting on your compass according to your map, you’re good to go. This is called setting your “declination.”

How much is this like the coming year?

A wilderness awaits. Danger and adventure lie before us. How will we navigate to stay on course?

God has given us the perfect roadmap for our lives – His very Word, the Bible. Jesus Christ has left us His Holy Spirit within us.   We have everything we need. But are we using them?

Our own heart can lead us astray. The magnetic pull of our will to the right or to the left may initially SEEM like the right path… but can quickly take us down a dangerous route.  We must remember that it is easy – and deadly – to get lost in the wild.

Each and every day, we must take a few moments to ask the Holy Spirit to declinate our hearts to God’s Word.  We need the constant adjustment and reminders. With our hearts lined up with God’s will for us, we are able to move forward in freedom and confidence.

Today, will you join me in committing to the daily declination of our hearts to Scripture? We need the Holy Spirit’s guidance like never before.

I can guarantee it will be an adventure like none other.

“For the waywardness of the simple will slay them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them. But whoever listens to me will dwell in safety, secure from the fear of evil.” – Wisdom (Proverbs 1:32-33)

The Heart of a Child

“I don’t understand why Papa had to go… I tried to tell Mama he would never do anything like that to hurt me.”

The tiny six year-old before me looked up and met my gaze with sadness.  Her brilliant blue eyes, usually large with wonder and excitement, held a dark hue of sorrow as the questions emerged from her heart.  She turned and looked back at her horse, and started brushing again.

“Do you miss your dad?” I ask quietly, allowing space for her emotion to hang in the air.

“You mean Papa?  Well, I just don’t know when I’ll see him again.  And Mark – my dad,” (I could tell she was still confused about her mom’s remarriage shortly after a horrific divorce,) “Well, he needs to go to parent school to learn how to be a good dad and discipline us right.  I keep trying to tell him but he won’t listen.”

I choked back a laugh and realized she fully believed that “parent school” was a very real place her new dad needed to attend for some parenting lessons.

She then bewailed to me how her toys would sometimes get taken away or she would get in trouble for things she felt weren’t her fault.  And underneath it all, my heart broke for the deep confusion she harbored as she tried to put the puzzle pieces of her broken little life together.  All I could do for her was enter that moment with her and show her she was loved.

It feels helpless not to be able to rescue children from hard circumstances or, as in this precious child’s case, to bring clarity to the confusion.  I don’t have any answers.  Then God reminded me that He is the one pursuing her heart and today, my job was just to love her right where she is.

After a few laps around the arena on a fuzzy Elska, our little Icelandic horse, we made our way into the barn to grab a s’more before the end of our session.  We sat together and my little friend, mouth full of marshmallow and chocolate, wanted to say a prayer for a friend who was sick and unable to play that day:

“Dear Jesus, thank you for Mary*… and thank you for… wait.  I guess I don’t know how to do this very well…” She looks up at me again, then explains,  “But I’m really good at praying for dinner and thanking God for stuff.”

I laugh and tell her she was doing a fantastic job.  I prayed for Mary first to help her get started and then she tried again:

“Dear God, thank you for Mary and all the adventures we had.  Please help her not be sick and get better.  And protect her so she doesn’t get sicker… and… Amen.”

My heart melted.  Even though this sweet child was facing her own trauma and doubts, God was creating a warrior within that little six year-old heart to have a depth of compassion and empathy for her friends.  Already He was healing her heart wounds and I had to trust His faithfulness to complete that work in her.

Please pray for this little child and for healing for their entire family.

*NOTE: “Mary” isn’t the actual name of her friend and used only to protect her privacy.

Trust

I couldn’t believe the note I was reading. Highly confidential, I learned the child I was about to see had experienced unimaginable trauma… Inflicted by a family member so close it made my blood run cold. She had barely escaped with her life.

I sent the note through our paper shredder and whispered a prayer as I headed outside.

Jesus, help me. You know what this little girl needs today.

Huddled by her mom and sister, her bright blue eyes met my gaze. We exchanged introductions and I learned she wanted to ride. I knew we had to get Hero.

Hero is a vibrantly alive, full of personality, and desperately rescued member of our horse herd. He was found stumbling through BLM land with a gunshot wound to his face and a badly injured leg. Coming to the ranch, X-rays revealed 2 bullets lodged in his brain, he lost one eye, and his leg took longer to heal than his face.  Hero was alive against all odds.

And so was this precious child.

Throughout grooming and saddling, I shared Hero’s story and she soaked it in.  As I warmed him up, Hero began crowding me a bit. I explained his need to respect my personal space before she rode and showed her how to be effective as I was protecting my “space bubble.”

Then WHACK. The rope swung and hit Hero over his only good eye. He jerked backwards and flung his head from the sting.

Mortified, I apologized to both her and the horse. “I’m so sorry. That was a mistake and I should NOT have hit him in the face like that.”

Meekly, I tried to move on with the session. Hero forgave immediately.  The little girl mounted up and I was pleased to see a giant smile spread across her face.

Our conversation continued and a question flew out of my mouth that I immediately regretted.

“How do you know if someone is truly trustworthy?”

I kicked myself – she SHOULD have been able to trust the one that had abused her. Her own family! Man, was I messing this up.

Unphased, she smiled and responded, “Well, I guess if they’re kind and nice and stuff you can trust them.”

Then words rolled off my tongue that I knew could not have come from me:

“Isn’t it true though that we all make mistakes? So we could probably agree that no one is truly trustworthy.”

She thought and nodded.

I continued, “Except for one Person, and that is Jesus.”

She beamed and nodded vigorously. (Miss blue eyes already shared she had asked Jesus in her heart and we had high-fived at being forever sisters in Him.)

“So, we can place our FULL trust in Jesus, and practice trusting others and giving them grace when they fail. Just like Hero…”

My mind spun as I realized and watched God weave a beautiful picture out of my mistake…

“I failed and slapped Hero over his one good eye. And yet he’s still choosing to walk forward in trust. He knows God’s got him and that he can allow for grace for us when we mess up. He’s able to forgive and keep moving forward with us in friendship. Pretty neat, huh?”

I could see all sorts of connections taking place across her face.  She rode like a champ and I sensed that she and Hero could understand each other in a way I never would. God had done so much healing in both of them… And they both were learning to walk forward in trust. I whispered another prayer of thanks that Jesus had indeed come and helped meet this child right here in a humble round pen.

Please take a moment and pray for continued healing this little girl and her family.

Marching Toward Freedom

Almost exactly a year ago, I had a session with a little girl that I will never forget.  Today, we will call her “Emily.”

“Sarah! Do you mind coming over to help us?” I turned to see my friend trying to dismount a girl so petrified she clung to her horse like a spider monkey.  I climbed through the fence and Molly introduced me to Emily, who refused to even acknowledge I was there.  She only offered the faintest hint of a head nod when I asked if I could help her get down.

The next day I had Emily in another session.  This girl was so timid and shy that I decided my goal for the entire session would be to get her to smile.  ONCE.

While grooming and tacking Robby, one of our “old faithfuls,” Emily seemed to relax the tiniest bit.  As soon as we got to the mounting block to ride, however, she tensed up again.  She was trying so hard to be brave!  After a couple attempts, and good Ol’ Robby halfway dozing off during the wait, she finally plopped down on top of him and resumed her spider monkey position from the day before.

“Do you know you’re supposed to ride horses like a princess?” I asked.  Emily looked at me confused.  “Yes, you should sit up straight and tall with your head held high, just like a princess.”

She straightened up remarkably.  I cheered her on and quietly noted her hands still had a white-knuckle grip on the saddle horn.   Again, this little girl was determined to be brave.

Emily didn’t want Robby to move.  The entire session we worked on taking one step… two… then four… and remember to sit like a princess!

“Hey Emily, I BET you can ride without holding onto the saddle horn.”

Her eyes widened in fear.

I barely heard her tiny voice.  “I don’t think I can do it,” she whispered.

“But I think you CAN.  And we don’t have to do much.”

“Okay…”

We started by taking one step with one hand resting on the pommel — right by the saddle horn in case she needed to grab it.  Robby wisely snuck in another step and made it two, gently building her frail confidence.  Before long, both hands were on the pommel… then one on her thigh… then both hands on her legs…

And step by step Emily and her horse stomped fear right out the door.

By the end, Robby walked freely. Emily closed her eyes and flung her arms out to both sides… as if she were flying.  Her face beamed a brilliant smile of freedom.

I couldn’t believe the transformation I just witnessed.  Nor could I believe the words the Holy Spirit poured out of my mouth:

“Emily, do you know what the Bible says?  It says we are God’s princesses and that through Jesus Christ He frees us and enables us to walk with heads held high.  Because of Jesus, we don’t have to be afraid of anything.  We can do everything… we can walk… run… and ride all with our heads held high because He gives us freedom.”

And at that moment, Emily laughed.

Not only had God used that little horse to stomp out fear and bring a smile, He had her ride forward into freedom that overflowed with joy and laughter.  Now isn’t Jesus like that?

Please pray for Emily and her family to know the ultimate freedom and joy of serving Jesus Christ.  And while you’re at it, maybe ask Jesus if there are areas that He’d like YOU to march toward freedom too.

 

Shouting Life

I had my first child fall off at the ranch.

She came off while working on a cantering lesson. The accident, while it could have been prevented, was one that wasn’t the horse’s or rider’s fault. It was MY fault.

I didn’t shout when I had the chance.

I saw Isaac, the horse, was rushing. I knew he needed to be asked to slow down and collected before trying again for a canter. My child didn’t recognize this and kept squeezing until he trotted faster and faster until she just bounced off.

My calm, easy-going self didn’t take the opportunity I had to holler and command her to slow down. I hate having to get loud… But that would have been the only way to have potentially stopped the crash. We had already talked about not allowing Isaac to rush and she had simply forgotten in the moment of adrenaline rush. If I had spoken up and risked sounding angry (which I wasn’t), I might have saved her some bruising.

Both horse and rider were champs. Isaac slowed down and stood quietly, she caught her breath and got back on and we continued our lesson in a more controlled frame.

For this post, I didn’t have a picture of a child falling off a horse, but I did have one of my sister playing too close to a cliff.  I thought my family and I goofing off is a humorous portrait of the power we have to help others.

Looking back, I realize I’m often afraid to speak up when it could make the most difference. I hesitate when I should be shouting. And more often than not, my voice has a power I neglect.

I’ve focused on Scripture saying the tongue has the power of… DEATH. I don’t want death and discouragement to come out of my mouth, so I try to be soft spoken. But God reminded me that I also have power to speak LIFE. And sometimes it’s not only appropriate, but necessary to yell that life out even if it sounds harsh.

Paul stood up and rebuked Peter in front of a group when he saw Peter displaying hypocrisy. Jesus called in a loud voice for Lazarus to come out of the tomb. And the Psalmist says many times to praise the Lord with a festal SHOUT.

I’m asking God to start showing me different areas He’s asking me to speak out and declare His glory. To be alert and call out gossip when I hear it. And to grow in courage to say hard things in love.

Who knows? It might save someone a disastrous crash. Or be the hard turning point to repentance and healing.

Am I willing to be used like THAT?

God, make me BRAVE.

 

NOTE: Scripture references — Proverbs 18:21; Galatians 2:14; John 11:43; Psalm 98:4

Brave

“Sometimes I feel like I want to be Brave.”

I stood in silence as I let the words sink in.  The girl sitting across from me in our Harvest Day class was painting the word “Brave” in large, bold letters across the wooden board in front of her.  I remembered just the day before I had been looking at what seemed to be a different child.

This same 10 year-old, who we’ll call “Hannah,” stood shyly off to the side as kids and leaders were being paired for sessions.  Her name was called and she came my way.  I noticed that she was very tall for her age and walked nervously and somewhat awkwardly as she followed me to start our session.  When I asked her what she wanted to do, she wrung her hands and responded, “I guess maybe… we could… ride a horse.”

“You guess maybe we could?” I countered.

“Oh, um, sorry.  Let’s ride a horse.”

At that moment, I had the oddest thought.  It was more like a deep knowing than a thought.  This girl needed to ride Phoebe.

Phoebe is one of our horses for a higher level rider.  She came as a filly from the most extreme rescue the ranch has ever been a part of… a backyard breeding program of over 300 starving, emaciated horses.  Breeding dogs were everywhere too, living in piles of junk, and starving to the point of attacking and trying to eat the horses.  The staff at the ranch lovingly  nourished Phoebe back to health and she is now a tall, strong horse.  Still, however, she sometimes struggles with fear and trust.  To be successful during a session, she needs a strong, confident leader.

And this girl was anything but confident.

Unsure of my decision, but feeling we should at least give it a try, we went to get Phoebe.  Hannah listened intently as I told her Phoebe’s story and her need of a confident rider.  I also told her that once someone earns Phoebe’s trust, she’s one of the most loyal horses I’d ever met.

While we groomed and saddled, I noticed that each time I taught Hannah something that was different than she’d been doing, she’d say, “Sorry.” I pointed that out to her and finally told her she didn’t need to say sorry anymore.  She wasn’t doing anything wrong and was just learning.  She accepted that and tried not to say it again.

Once in the arena, atop Phoebe’s back, I was amazed at the transformation I saw in Hannah.  She was quiet and confident for her horse.  We worked on a few exercises and it just happened that Hannah had great balance and was able to stay calm even when Phoebe wanted to rush and go faster.  She did great with her!

And as she rode, she started to talk.  And laugh.  And tell me stories.  She came to life and I was so honored to see and be a part of what God was doing in her heart.

The following day during our class, I was delighted that God gave me a sneak peak at the transformation He was continuing to do.

“Sometimes I want to be brave.”

I jolted back to the present.  “Hannah, you were brave yesterday with Phoebe.  You were SO brave!  It was incredible to watch you do so well with her.  It takes a pretty special person to be able to do what you did.  I love your sign.  Good job!”

She smiled and quietly went back to work.  At the end of the class, I looked again at her board.

Behind “Brave” was a painting of a horse silhouette running into the sunset.

 

 

Treasure Hunting

I’m learning to love junk.  And yard sales.  It’s so fulfilling to find an unwanted special something that’s peeling paint and falling apart, then lovingly restore it to beauty and purpose.

My friends and I routinely explore weekend yard sales and come home with all sorts of fun, seemingly useless furniture, old metal, and household items.  More than once we’ve made daring last minute rode maneuvers to follow directions to remote sales, hidden deep in suburbia or way out in the country.  We call it “treasure hunting.”

One particular day, while visiting Redding, California we had some free time.  It was the weekend, so OF COURSE we went yard saling (which is a bonafide redneck term).  We zoomed around the countryside, hit many sales, and met some amazing people.

And that’s where the true treasure hunting comes in.  I love that my friends and I see each yard sale as a potential opportunity to meet people and perhaps share the love of Jesus with them in some small way.  We fill up some of our car conversation with prayers that God would lead us to just the people He wants us to visit.

We stopped at a huge sale that day. Upon entering tables and piles of junk, I couldn’t believe what I saw. Buckets and buckets of ivory-covered wooden piano keys! After momentarily surveying my heavenly discovery in disbelief, I hurried to collect an octave of notes from “C” to “B.”  I had no idea what I’d DO with them, but in my mind this was definitely a treasure worth jumping on!

While I rummaged through buckets of old keys, one of our group went over to talk with the man and his friend hosting the sale.  A few minutes later she found the rest of us and announced, “We have an assignment.”

She explained she asked one of the men if we could pray over him.  He had been in a car accident years ago, leaving him with a neurological disorder that made him tremble and shake constantly. So we all went over to meet him. Upon seeing him, I noticed his legs were almost jumping in place and his hands shook so much the wristwatch he wore clanked loudly against the handle of his cane.  Trembling was a part of this man’s every moment.

Before we prayed, we got to know him a bit and asked if He knew Jesus.  His answer seemed a bit unsure, but he said he had been going to church and was going to get baptized later that afternoon.  My friend asked him if he wanted to be certain that Jesus was his Savior and Lord — and told him that TODAY could be the day that he remembers for sure that he chose to follow Jesus.

And he’s said YES, he wanted to be sure.

All huddled together around this quaking man, we listened as he spoke to Jesus… “Jesus, I thank you that today You are my Savior and my Lord.  And I thank you for bringing all of these wonderful people to celebrate my birthday with me in You.”

We then prayed over his body and for his healing.  He stood slowly as we were praying and he said, “You know what Jesus told me?  He said I need to exercise!”

We laughed and agreed that God works healing in all sorts of ways.  He repeated each of our names again and again and we embraced before we left.  The other man with him was a believer and had been taking the precious gentleman we prayed over to church.  He joined us in our prayer and we all departed praising God.

I chuckle now at myself to think how very intent I was at looking through grimy old piano keys when my friend had taken the time to look and notice a person.  A person who needed encouragement that day and the assurance of knowing his salvation was complete in Jesus.  And a meeting in a seemingly random time and place that was completely heavenly ordained.

That is true treasure hunting.  And something, if we are paying attention, we get to do every day as believers.  The harvest is PLENTY, but the workers are few.  What harvest field is God sending you to today?

“It’s really yummy!”

An energetic, somewhat easily distracted, and beautifully joyful little girl walked right into my heart this summer.  I cannot share her name because it’s possible that it would jeopardize her safety.  But you guys have to hear her story.  So, for the time being, we shall call her Sophie.

Sophie is 10 years-old, loves horses, and more than anything loves Jesus.  Taken from her biological family at age 7 because of abuse, she’s had her share of trauma.  And yet, her enthusiasm and zest for life is absolutely contagious.  In our first conversation, she asked ME if I were a Christian and if I knew Jesus.

One of Sophie’s biggest dreams is to work toward cantering.  So, each session we choose a riding skill to develop that serves as the perfect foundation towards this goal.  Patiently and diligently, Sophie has learned to shorten her reins, practice the emergency stop and dismount (even bareback!), and learning to post.  She has great aptitude and natural balance, but more importantly self-motivation that helps her through the less exciting exercises.

To Sophie’s utter dismay, one day she came for sessions and the sky grew overcast and stormy.  It is a rare Central Oregon day when we do not have full sun all afternoon — really, all day for that matter!  Though we can ride horses in the rain, we must put them away at the first sign of lightning and the prospects certainly weren’t looking good for our session.  We opted to grab a Bible instead and run through the rain up to the Lookout, a shelter nestled into the back ridge of the ranch.

And we just hung out and talked.

For the first time, I got to hear more of her story.  She opened up and shared about her family dynamics, her trauma, and her healing.  I sat amazed as this little girl, who by all means could have been cowering in a dark shell of pain and mistrust, openly talked about these hard things with a smile and light in her eyes.  When I asked her how it was that she could be so joyful about all that has happened to her, she gave the most profound answer.

“I know there was a lot of bad stuff that happened, but I feel like God turned it all to good because now maybe I can understand and help someone else who’s going through a hard time.”  She paused and thought a minute then slowly continued, “It’s sorta like an egg.  You can’t eat that raw egg, but when it’s cooked, it’s really yummy!”

I laughed and Sophie said, “Wow… I just came up with that now by myself!”

What an incredible understanding of suffering from a warrior so young.

Sometimes I complain and ask God why we have to go through suffering and I have a hard time remembering the bigger picture that Jesus gives us in Scripture.  Paul tells the Corinthian church, “Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer.” (2 Co. 2:6, NLT)  Sophie knew that God was using her troubles to prepare her to help others.

At the end of our non-horse, rainy session, in typical Sophie fashion, she declared, “You know what?  I’m kinda glad it rained because otherwise we wouldn’t have gotten to hang out and talk.  That was a lot of fun!”

Again, Sophie exercised her habit of thankfulness in even the little things — and I smiled.  Little did she know God was using her in that moment to remind and encourage me of His faithfulness.

Lord Jesus,  I often ask that You would use me and then am surprised and discouraged when things get hard or trouble comes.  Please help me to remember that You are just answering my prayers to use me and train me to better help others.   You take the most bitter, raw seasons of life and make them wholesome and yummy.  I can forget that discomfort, heat, and fire are all part of that process!  Thank You for my dear little friend and the lessons you teach me through her each time we get to hang out.  I’d ask You’d help get her to cantering soon.

 

Mountains

Source: Mountains