"Bomb-Proof"

They said that mare was broncy,

Cold-backed, flighty, too,

I worked her in the round pen,

And what they said was true.

She was a coming five year old,

Had twenty, thirty rides,

Watched me closely, every move,

And always terrified.

So slowly and so quietly,

I worked her round and round,

And on about day four you see,

A change came so profound,

She felt it and she showed it,

And I felt it, too,

That is when the trust began,

A wonderful break-through.

I picked a light-weight, older cack,

Stirrups were ox-bow,

One tricked out with buckin’ rolls,

And a night-latch strong, you know.

When I stepped on she stood right there,

Then looked around at me,

I asked her to move on out,

She did so, quietly,

Time passed and each time I rode,

Her confidence grew, too,

She got so when I asked her,

That’s exactly what she’d do.

Outside pastures, prowlin’ cows,

I let her see a lot,

Loaded up and went to town,

To see what else she got.

And no matter where we went,

Or what we had to do,

That little mare just showed her trust,

And went right with it, too.

As bomb-proof now as any horse,

I ever rode I’ll say,

Parade, grand entry, rodeo,

She shows that she’s okay.

I’ll tell you that we’ve come so far,

To believe you’d have to see,

How scared she was when she came here,

And turned out not to be,

No big secret training clue,

No technique to sell,

Just spending time to build the trust,

That’s what I’m glad to tell.

You see the link with how the Lord,

Makes our fear to go,

Builds our trust with gentle hands,

His love for sure to know.

And when He says to go and serve,

We’re glad His smile to see,

Whatever He requires of us,

We can both do and be.

“For we walk by faith, not by sight…” (2 Corinthians 5:7, NAS)

Walking by faith requires us to put our trust in the Lord no matter what the circumstances may be. Keeping focused on Him rather than the threat makes all the difference, because He alone knows how to keep things in perspective. When the young horse keeps focus, the same thing happens. When Peter walked on water he kept his eyes on the Lord. When he became distracted by the wind and waves, he sank. Jesus asked him why he doubted. Faith is all about living by what God has said rather than anything feeling or circumstance that argues with God’s best. We see what others don’t so we can experience what others won’t. But they could…

Lord, teach us to trust You, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Bill Anton, used by permission. Thanks, Bill, and God bless you.