Tuesday, April 10, 2012
How one trains on the flat maybe indicative of how strong one will finish. Rather than conserve energy in anticipation of the next hill, draw upon God as the Ultimate Resource, listening always to His words of encouragement, pushing harder... increasing strength and endurance so that together, as the next hill approaches, you'll be ready for that one that may need to be carried. SGKaplan
Excellence
Excellence is not about being the fastest, strongest, smartest. Excellence is competing successfully within oneself. Achieving daily purpose triumphantly, pursuing victoriously the Still Small Voice that says one can when the louder, more persistent ones disagree. That...is when we win. SGKaplan
Fear and Faith
Excitement accompanies the birth of both Fear and Faith.
Fear and Faith are non threatening when young, but are offspring of two distinctly different fathers.
Fear and Faith both get stronger with regular exercise and the more they are fed, the larger they grow.
The longer Fear and Faith are allowed in, the more space they require however, they can never reside peacefully together, one will surely devour the other.
Be discerning in the decision of which to keep, as one is more persistent than the other.
One will steal, kill, and destroy and lead to death.
The other will protect, guide and comfort and lead to life.
You decide which to nurture. SGKaplan
Fear and Faith are non threatening when young, but are offspring of two distinctly different fathers.
Fear and Faith both get stronger with regular exercise and the more they are fed, the larger they grow.
The longer Fear and Faith are allowed in, the more space they require however, they can never reside peacefully together, one will surely devour the other.
Be discerning in the decision of which to keep, as one is more persistent than the other.
One will steal, kill, and destroy and lead to death.
The other will protect, guide and comfort and lead to life.
You decide which to nurture. SGKaplan
Forgiveness
It was a late Friday afternoon when a neighbor called to borrow our horsetrailer. An unusual request coming from someone who didn't own animals.
He must have known what I was thinking, as he went on to explain that his neighbor's donkey had been attacked by a pitull and needed to be taken to the vet.
In a short time, two men pulled into our driveway and jumped out of their truck, one I recognized but the other I had never met before.
"Is that blood?" my husband asked the young stranger who, as I had just noticed was stained a dark reddish brown. Without waiting for an answer we both jumped into emergency mode.
Neither men had ever driven a horsetailer before and we thought now was not the best time to learn.
We loaded up the trailer and followed them to a nearby pasture where a brave little blood soaked miniature donkey, Guinevere, lay, partially restrained and partially supported by two other neighbors.
It took all of us to get the little grey and red body into the trailer but as soon as it was accomplished we set off for the 20 minute drive down the hill toward the vet.
It was decided that three of us would help support Guinevere in the trailer during the drive. I knew the road well but the ride seemed especially long with the winding turns, the rattling of the trailer dividers, and the cold air rushing through the open trailer windows, but I listened as each neighbor filled me in as to the events that had unfolded earlier in the day.
Martin, the young man stained with blood that I had first met in our driveway, had come home elated after a successful job interview following several months of unemployment. It was a beautiful day and he thought he would spend the rest of it with his best friend of five years, his dog. Upon returning to his parents house where he had been living temporarily, he left his dog unattended while he went inside which he now realized was a terrible mistake.
In a short time, the dog's preditor instinct kicked in and Guinevere who lived next door, was his unfortunate target. Martin was near tears as he spoke. He knew now that his mistake could cost his companion his life.
Steve, the other rider in the trailer and was holding to his own mix of emotions. The son-in-law of Guinevere's owner, he told he story of his father-in-law having to put down his own dog for the very same reason. Choosing to attack one of his miniature donkeys a few years earlier.
Weeks passed, but this particular Friday evening continued to plague my thoughts. I decided I would go back to the pasture where we initially picked up Guinevere and check on her progress.
As I drove up the now familiar drive toward an old barn, I saw a woman unloading a pickup. I would introduce myself, I thought, and see if she had any information. After I introduced myself and explained my small role in the events that had transpired a few weeks back, she asked if I wanted to see her horse. I thought it was a peculiar request, maybe she was just being friendly. She must have noticed my puzzled expression and she went on to explain as she led me into the dark barn where a beautiful white Arabian mare stood. "No one checked the other animals in the pasture", she said. The anger and bitterness resounded loudly as she spoke. "Look" she said as she pointed to the foreleg and chest area of her mare.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing, three weeks of healing still hadn't disguised the ground beef appearance across the front of the horse.
As I listened, my mind went back three weeks prior when I wrestled with my own emotions of judgment and empathy as a young bloodstained man came desperately seeking to try to rectify a situation that his momentary irresponsibility had caused. I witnessed how this one act of irresponsibility could have a ripple effect through a community, touching people who had not know each other previously. I was now seeing how unforgiveness could bind someone so tightly captive that their very essence was disfigured.
I'm not sure why God allows some things to happen and prevents others, but it was not in the too distant past that my own irresponsibilty did damage and effected others, but by the mercy of God, a lot of "what ifs"...did not.
Sadly, I learned that Guinevere was put to sleep a week following her attack due to unreparable nerve damage in her front leg. Martin's pit bull also was put down.
The beautiful white Arab's flesh wounds are still on the mend but it is often the wounds that we don't see that hurt the most and take God's healing hand to relieve...we just need to ask.
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus said to him, I say not to you, until seven times: but, until seventy times seven. Matthew 18:21-22
He must have known what I was thinking, as he went on to explain that his neighbor's donkey had been attacked by a pitull and needed to be taken to the vet.
In a short time, two men pulled into our driveway and jumped out of their truck, one I recognized but the other I had never met before.
"Is that blood?" my husband asked the young stranger who, as I had just noticed was stained a dark reddish brown. Without waiting for an answer we both jumped into emergency mode.
Neither men had ever driven a horsetailer before and we thought now was not the best time to learn.
We loaded up the trailer and followed them to a nearby pasture where a brave little blood soaked miniature donkey, Guinevere, lay, partially restrained and partially supported by two other neighbors.
It took all of us to get the little grey and red body into the trailer but as soon as it was accomplished we set off for the 20 minute drive down the hill toward the vet.
It was decided that three of us would help support Guinevere in the trailer during the drive. I knew the road well but the ride seemed especially long with the winding turns, the rattling of the trailer dividers, and the cold air rushing through the open trailer windows, but I listened as each neighbor filled me in as to the events that had unfolded earlier in the day.
Martin, the young man stained with blood that I had first met in our driveway, had come home elated after a successful job interview following several months of unemployment. It was a beautiful day and he thought he would spend the rest of it with his best friend of five years, his dog. Upon returning to his parents house where he had been living temporarily, he left his dog unattended while he went inside which he now realized was a terrible mistake.
In a short time, the dog's preditor instinct kicked in and Guinevere who lived next door, was his unfortunate target. Martin was near tears as he spoke. He knew now that his mistake could cost his companion his life.
Steve, the other rider in the trailer and was holding to his own mix of emotions. The son-in-law of Guinevere's owner, he told he story of his father-in-law having to put down his own dog for the very same reason. Choosing to attack one of his miniature donkeys a few years earlier.
Weeks passed, but this particular Friday evening continued to plague my thoughts. I decided I would go back to the pasture where we initially picked up Guinevere and check on her progress.
As I drove up the now familiar drive toward an old barn, I saw a woman unloading a pickup. I would introduce myself, I thought, and see if she had any information. After I introduced myself and explained my small role in the events that had transpired a few weeks back, she asked if I wanted to see her horse. I thought it was a peculiar request, maybe she was just being friendly. She must have noticed my puzzled expression and she went on to explain as she led me into the dark barn where a beautiful white Arabian mare stood. "No one checked the other animals in the pasture", she said. The anger and bitterness resounded loudly as she spoke. "Look" she said as she pointed to the foreleg and chest area of her mare.
I couldn't believe what I was seeing, three weeks of healing still hadn't disguised the ground beef appearance across the front of the horse.
As I listened, my mind went back three weeks prior when I wrestled with my own emotions of judgment and empathy as a young bloodstained man came desperately seeking to try to rectify a situation that his momentary irresponsibility had caused. I witnessed how this one act of irresponsibility could have a ripple effect through a community, touching people who had not know each other previously. I was now seeing how unforgiveness could bind someone so tightly captive that their very essence was disfigured.
I'm not sure why God allows some things to happen and prevents others, but it was not in the too distant past that my own irresponsibilty did damage and effected others, but by the mercy of God, a lot of "what ifs"...did not.
Sadly, I learned that Guinevere was put to sleep a week following her attack due to unreparable nerve damage in her front leg. Martin's pit bull also was put down.
The beautiful white Arab's flesh wounds are still on the mend but it is often the wounds that we don't see that hurt the most and take God's healing hand to relieve...we just need to ask.
Then came Peter to him, and said, Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times? Jesus said to him, I say not to you, until seven times: but, until seventy times seven. Matthew 18:21-22
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