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The goodness and favor of the Lord reaches from everlasting to everlasting.
He wishes to comfort us in our distress and lift us up when we are feeling
low. The Bible says that God is our refuge and strength, a very present
help in trouble. He is our light, our shield, our protector, our Lord and
our Savior. The Bible declares in Psalm 34:8-9 “O taste and see that the
LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him. O fear the LORD,
ye His saints: for there is no want to them that fear Him.” In the tough
times of life, we must bring into remembrance the faithfulness of the Lord
and know that He is with us and that all things will work together for our
good. Be encouraged to trust the Lord in every area of your life knowing
that He is faithful to those who trust Him. (Psalm 103:17) (Isaiah 59:1)
I hope this message ministers to your heart to always depend on the Lord
and know that God will not withhold any good thing from you.
THE SHADOW AND THE CHICK
This story, about one of our numerous pets, happened many years ago, but
it is one of those unforgettable events that leave a lasting impression.
My shadow fell at an eighty-five degree angle behind me as I passed the
gravel pit, but I barely noticed. I was exhausted after having climbed the
two-kilometer hill from where my car had decided to go on strike. “And to
think, I still have two or three more kilometers to hike before I reach
home.” I sighed. My mind was already on flopping down in my lazy-boy chair,
a large glass of ice water in my hand, kicking off my shoes, and closing
my eyes.
Thinking about it, my eyelids drooped. As I shuffled along the gravel road,
I had a creepy feeling that someone was following me. My eyes popped open;
I spun my head around; I froze. After looking in every direction, but
seeing no one, I continued my walking. But the feeling of being stalked
increased. Again I spun my head around, slowing my pace. That’s when I saw
him, his size exaggerated by my fright. He crouched, just at the tip of my
shadow, when he saw me turn my head. My hand flew to my heart.
“Oh!” I said, taking a step toward the object of my fright. “You scared me
half to death!” As I walked slowly toward the big gray cat he began to
retreat. “Well, if that’s the way you want it, fine.” My heart still
pounding, I changed direction, heading once more toward home. Every once
in awhile I would turn my head to see if the cat was still following me.
He was, always just within my shadow. If I stopped, he stopped. If I turned
around and walked toward him, he walked away from me. If I ran a few steps,
he ran a few steps. It became a game to him. I decided that his intention
was to become my shadow. So, like one ignores a shadow, I ignored the cat.
It wasn’t until the following morning when I went out to do the chores
that I thought any further about the cat. But there he was, hiding in the
shadow of the house. How had he managed to maneuver his way around the
geese, the ducks, the turkeys, the chickens, the dog, and the two about-to-
be-mother cats, to even enter our yard? And how had he been allowed, by
the menagerie to remain? Picking up a dish of cat food I crept toward the
shadow. He tensed, slinking a few feet away. I set the food down and stood
back to watch. As slowly as a shadow turns with the sun, the cat moved
toward the food. Our big Malamute, Skipper, wagged his tail, as if
approving my decision to let the shadow stay. I gave the big dog a pat on
his head. Then and there he took it upon himself to become the cat’s
personal bodyguard.
Two weeks after The Shadow’s arrival, “Sugar” and “Cinnamon”, on two
consecutive days, presented the family with three kittens each. Then a
strange thing happened. “Shadow” -- as I decided to name the cat -- for
the first time since allowing us to adopt him, entered the house and began
to explore. This time it was I who did the shadowing. And it was when I
was following him around that I discovered that “The Shadow” had not come
alone, and that “he” was a “she”, and she was looking for a place to
deposit her litter. An hour later she produced two kittens, one dead, and
one as gray as herself.
At the same time as the cats were having their kittens; the hens were
hatching their chicks. Fourteen lively, fluffy chicks followed behind
their respective mothers. But one chick, not so lively, lagged behind,
peeping at the top of its lungs for its mother to come back and get him.
Mother hen had no time for an offspring who couldn’t keep up, so she
ignored him. The peeping grew louder. Leaving her kitten in the safety of
its box, Shadow trotted off in the direction of the distressed chick.
Picking him up in her mouth, as gently as she would have, had he been her
kitten, she carried him back to the house, depositing him in the box
beside her own sightless baby, then nestled in beside them. For two days,
until it died, she showered on that chick all the love and devotion she
had reserved for her own dead offspring. Every time she tried to wash him,
he wobbled and tumbled over onto his back, peeping his protest,
unresponsive to her love. Try as she may she could not make a kitten out
of that fluffy yellow chick.
A devoted mother to an ungrateful chick, Shadow remained aloof and distant,
watching and following us in secret. One day, like a shadow on a cloudy
day, she disappeared, perhaps to become someone else’s shadow. But left
behind was her one remaining kitten, who, strangely enough, could often be
found in the chicken pen, snoozing contentedly in one of the nesting boxes.
By Helen Dowd
Read and meditate on these scriptures:
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth
us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in
any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”
Psalm 37:3-5 “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the
land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and
He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the
LORD; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass.”
Joshua 1:9 “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be
not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee
whithersoever thou goest.”
Psalm 37:3-6 “Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the
land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the LORD; and
He shall give thee the desires of thine heart. Commit thy way unto the
LORD; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass. And He shall bring
forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgment as the noonday.”
All of these scriptures can be found in the King James Version Bible.
Today’s Selected Poem: DO NOT FEAR
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/inpoem174.htm
Today’s Selected Testimony: GOD IS FAITHFUL
Click here to read --- http://www.Godswork.org/testimony118.htm
In Christ’s Service,
Dwayne Savaya
God’s Work Ministry |
