WILD OR USEFUL

WILD OR USEFUL

"I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go, I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or a mule without understanding, which must be curbed by bit and bridle else it will not keep with you." Psalm 32:8&9

Wild horses galloping across the plains or along a wide stretch of beach are so majestic looking. They are free…tossing their heads as their manes and tails stream out in wild abandon.

They are beautiful, however, they are not of use to mankind except for that beauty. They are wild and free doing what horses do.

How does a horse go from such wildness to being of use to its owner - to being put behind a plow, to pulling a wagon or surrey, to becoming a race horse, to serving as a police horse?

Please meet Tucker, my daughter's horse which she uses in the Sheriff's Mounted Division. I love that horse - he is such a protection to my daughter when she is out among crowds at a football game, during hot summer days when crowds are milling about…or when she is just out for a ride enjoying the out-of-doors with him.

What did it take for Tucker to go from wild to useful? It took years. He wasn't born useful. His owner kept him close from birth, training him, being with him, talking to him, teaching him to trust. That is what God does with us.

God takes us, trains us, teaches us…and we learn to trust Him, doing His every command. If we are sensitive to His ways, He can even command us with a word or a gentle nudge - a bit and bridle aren't even necessary.

How about you? Are you still wild or have you come under the ownership of God Himself? Are you submitting yourself to his training and discipline or are you going your own way, liking your wild ways best? Do you need a bit and bridle or do you respond to His quiet commands?

In God's eyes, he surely loves those wild horses. But I have a feeling it brings a special smile to His face when He sees one of His children disciplined for His use, ready to be called where needed., ready to do what pleases Him.

Heavenly Father, thank you for all of the effort and time it takes You to train me for Your purposes. Please help me to submit to your training day by day. In Jesus' name. Amen.