Grandy was a beautiful Arabian horse and quite well-behaved. It was a good thing he was, because I had very little riding experience the day I took him out with a couple of other riders who were more experienced. All went well for about an hour as I followed at a distance... until we crossed a bridge with water flowing underneath. Suddenly the horse became uneasy and began to balk. Sam yelled to me, “Get him away from the edge of the bridge! He’s afraid of water!”
Having crossed the bridge, we had to go down an embankment on the edge of the road and cross a culvert which had about six inches of water in it. Every time I steered him toward the embankment, the horse would veer around or back up. He refused to go ahead. Traffic on the road had to come to a stop as I dismounted and proceeded to lead him by the halter down the embankment. As I reached the bottom and started through the water, the horse moved his head in behind me and shoved ahead, leaping over the water and sending me head over heels into the brush on the other side of the water. Sam, the horse’s owner, had been watching and coaching me as all this happened. Other than not being sure of what had happened, I was unhurt and picked myself up, while Sam, realizing I was just shaken up, found the whole thing quite funny.
After a rough ride through woodland paths, we came to a large, deep, watery area which could only spell trouble for Grandy and me. Sam instructed me to bring Grandy up close to Scamp, the horse he was riding. Scamp and Grandy were good friends.
“Let his head rest on Scamp’s rump,” Sam instructed, “and follow closely like that, right through the water.”
To my surprise, Grandy crossed over the watery area without any sign of fear. I would never have believed it. The rest of the ride was uneventful, other than my being saddle-sore from a first long ride.
Scamp leading Grandy reminds me of the 23rd Psalm: “The Lord is my shepherd.... He leadeth me beside the still waters.... Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”
Do you know Jesus as your Shepherd? He laid down His life for you because He loves you. What a friend Jesus is! Claim Him as your Saviour, and He will never leave you nor forsake you, so that you “may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear.” Hebrews 13:66So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. (Hebrews 13:6). What a SAVIOUR! He is even more — a Shepherd, a Friend and a Helper.
ML-05/31/1987