"Horse Named Hallelujah"

We knew the mare was dying,

As she struggled to give birth,

And God knows that I loved her,

More than most things on this earth.

Lived long enough to give him,

The first milk that he’d need,

She then stopped drinkin’ water,

And went off all her feed.

And though we tried to save her,

Nothing the vet could do,

We had my Grandma prayin’,

For a miracle, it’s true.

But then she wasn’t breathing,

Her strong, old heartbeat failed,

And I ran home to Grandma,

And cried and fussed and wailed.

But then we prayed together,

And I heard her giving praise,

For the the time the mare once gave us,

All those happy, golden days.

Then she ended with an amen,

And a hallelujah, see,

So I decided then and there,

That’s what his name would be.

The horse named Hallelujah,

Grew up and very strong,

Faster than all others,

And I never thought it wrong,

To match him up and race him,

‘Cause he never got outrun,

Though he would surprise them,

I thought it so much fun.

And, Dad, he said let’s cut him,

He’ll make a cow horse, see,

I said, no, let’s race him,

He’s breeding stock to be.

But not like some stud horses,

With ease to work and train,

And I believe the reason,

Is he had his momma’s brain.

And every time we won a race,

The noise was loud and clear,

They shouted hallelujah,

You heard it far and near.

It’s been many decades,

Since that grand, old studhorse died,

And he was a great pleasure,

To know and breed and ride.

And as we laid him gently low,

The night he said good-bye,

I whispered hallelujah,

With a teardrop in my eye.

And friends who stood there with me,

Said they heard it on the wind,

A hallelujah chorus,

Praises for the life that ends.

That’s what I hope will happen,

When they finally lay me low,

At the moment of my passing,

I hope that what we show,

Is a praise to our Creator,

And to Jesus Christ, our friend,

Who’s there with Hallelujah,

Where God’s pastures never end.

“Surely Your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever…” (Psalm 23:6, NLT)

Living forever with the Lord is the best thing about the twenty-third Psalm. Yes, everything about it is wonderful- rest in great pastures, renewal of strength, guidance and protection, overflowing blessings- all of it! But, best of all is not what we experience here in this life. The Lord shepherds us here so that He can live forever with us there. All of this life is not about here but there. And it’s important to remember how we can be sure we are going there. Assurance comes when we trust Jesus to do something for us that we cannot do for ourselves. When we surrender control to Him, He exchanges control for assurance. If He makes us sure, we will never be talked out of it by anything as paltry as a mere argument. That’s because we’ve experienced His goodness and mercy.

Lord, give us the full assurance that when we die we will live with You forever, in Jesus’ name.

Art by Doug Monson, used by permission. Thanks, Doug, and God bless you.