Another morning, another climb up the mountain out of the valley. Forever cherishing the connection with the Father, our Creator in the alone time that has become a “need” greater than any desire I could list. As I ascend around another corner, down below I hear a great noise. Crashing through the dry brush beneath me are my deer. The first realization was “How odd?” That is what struck me first. I stopped and watched them for a few minutes. They had also stopped and through the bare trees, ground littered with fallen dead leaves, I spied the two -staring right back at me. But all I could think was, “Why are you going down the hill into the valley? You guys are always on top of the mountain.” They soon bounded off , zig-zagging tails waving at me as they headed down the hill. As for me, I continued my ascent and had almost reached the first view, when a second crashing, branches snapping, leaves crunching noise startled me. This time I could not see them. The brush hugged the path too tightly to view them, but I knew. God was emphasizing His point. “Follow me down to the valley!”
This may not seem weird or out of the ordinary to many people but on my journey it was very strange. What came to mind as I continued to walk was the book, “Hind’s Feet on High Places” by Hannah Hurand. It is a wonderful classic allegory about the deep desires of all God’s children to be led to new heights of love, joy and victory. The verse referenced is Habakkuk 3:19 – “The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like Hinds feet (deer), and He will make me to walk upon mine High places.”
It is an amazing journey about crippled “Much-Afraid” (the main character) and her walk with the Good Shepherd, triumphing over every circumstance by accepting His will, lying down hers and moment by moment following Him. Allowing Him to mold and shape her every day, through the good and bad. We are told,
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
9 “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9
She learns that with complete trust, sacrifice of self and acceptance of circumstances, we will triumph over the evil and learn from each experience.
What I failed to mention about that day was the mist that clung so heavily to the valley. It was still shrouding my climb and created an eeriness through the cemetery. Again the meaning was not lost. We cannot see ahead too far as we walk this path of life. God may be calling us off His mountain of peace and safety, out of our comfortable lives to go down into the valleys of the world. To work with Him (the Good Shepherd), “for that is where evil and sorrowful and ugly things are which need to be overcome.”
Too many of us are limping, crippled like “Much-Afraid” in this allegory. She comes to the conclusion that the only really satisfactory way of dealing with evil is “not simply binding it, but where possible overcoming it with good.” So as for me, I have been allowed to hang on the mountain-top, learning lessons all summer, but now He is leading me into the valley to overcome the evil of abortion with good. (See my ministry theredegg.org.) I know no other way but His leading. What comes to mind is how Jesus taught us to pray……let thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven…..
The Red Egg 