And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.” Romans 8:28
Nobody saw it coming. I have a friend who used to attend the church that I used to pastor. He moved and I retired, but we still manage to see each other when he visits town. The thing about my friend is that he is extremely “goosy.” Let me explain. When we want to have some fun, we would sneak up behind David and just touch him. Then you better watch out and “Katie Bar the Door.” He would jump in the air and come down with arms flailing. That’s why when you were going to “get him” you had to make sure the area was clear. It was and is just too fun to watch him in full blown “goose” mode.”
Well, the other day I had another opportunity to experience “goose mode” but it was not with David or any other human but a six-year-old mule. Her name is Daisy Mae and we met when a good friend of mine invited me to go on a trail ride with him. He had his horse and I had Daisy. Now don’t get mules confused with donkeys. Mules are a cross breed between a horse and a donkey and are about the size of their momma, the horse. While it takes more than a few years to train them they are worth the wait. Daisy was worth the wait—but I didn’t know she had some David in her. Let me explain.
There is a thing that goes under the tail of a horse or mule that keeps the saddle from riding forward toward the neck. I think it is called a tail Cooper and it is an important part of the saddle and tack. Well, somewhere along the way, way out in the wilderness, that part broke and came loose. Apparently, it was dangling down near Daisy’s bottom, and she apparently thought it was a bee or something. Anyway, we stopped just for a moment, and it was in that moment that Daisy had her “goose” moment. She got all fired up and decided that the “bee” had to go. She turned hard around to the left and started to go in a circle. My friend grabbed the rein, but it was too late. The saddle slid to the right, and I was promptly ejected from Daisy and to the ground. I fell hard, too hard for this seventy-year-old body.
When I came to my senses, I was just stunned. I had fallen on my right side and soon it became apparent that my right shoulder had taken the brunt of the force. It was a few minutes before I could stand, and it was a few more minutes when we decided I needed to walk awhile. Well, the more time passed, the sorer my arm and shoulder became. We were about an hour and half from the truck and trailer…one of the longest hour and a half of my life. We did make it but for now that is where the story will end. Is there more? Oh yes, there is more but you will have to wait a couple of days for the rest.
One of the big truths about Daisy getting goosed is the fact that nobody was at fault—not Daisy, not my friend and not me. The truth is sometimes things happen. We live in an imperfect world, but we have a perfect God who is always working on our behalf. We literally were in a wilderness area and that fall could have been a whole lot worse and if it had been—well, there was no easy way out. But God was watching, and God protected me from that, but that’s not all. I don’t have the whole picture yet, but I do have the whole promise from Romans 8:28. There we read, “And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.”
What a great promise and don’t miss this. God causes…not everything, for so much of what we endure is part of this imperfect world. What He causes is good to come from the difficult. I know there are plenty of lessons I am going to learn from all of this but one I know for sure is this. No matter what, no matter how hard the fall, no matter how long the recovery, no matter the matter—He’s got this. Be sure and watch out for part two! Bro. Dewayne
Grits with Grace 