Your testimonies are wonderful...
The unfolding of Your words give light;
it imparts understanding to the simple.
Psalm 119:129-130
May 30th, 2011, I was "sitting with the Lord" and I found myself in Psalm 144. When I got to verse 12, I wrote in the margins, "Father, I'm asking this..."
May our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, our daughters like corner pillars cut for the structure of a palace; may our granaries be full, providing all kinds of produce;
The verse continues...
may our sheep bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our fields, may our cattle be heavy with you, suffering no mishap or failure in bearing...
By the time I got to verse 15, I sensed the Lord was saying "Amen. Let it be done."
Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall! Blessed are the people whose God is the LORD!
I wondered what some of these verses looked like to someone who owns no sheep or cattle - symbolic, I thought at the time - but...
By the middle of June, we were brand new to the joys of cattle on our pasture land! They didn't belong to us but they quickly stole my heart! I would never have dreamed that I would love cows - but I do! One tiny calf, "154Y" was barely visible from our yard. She was extremely weak and near death. I had absolutely no clue what to do but the maternal instinct in me kicked in and decided there was no way that she was going to die on "my watch". For 3 days, my family and I helped provide shelter for her. I bottle fed her and for a day or two even had to massage her throat to get her to swallow. Her owner gave her all of the medicine that she possibly could but the prospect was grim.
Our family and friends prayed and prayed. I had completely forgotten the verses above. They didn't register to me or come back to mind. After three days, the owner was preparing herself to tell me that sometimes calves just die. She didn't know how this rookie farmer would take the news but by the time she arrived at our yard, I was beaming! Little 154Y had made it to her feet and had the strength to nurse from her mother! We both knew it was a miracle! That's when the Lord brought these verses back to mind! He had given the promise in advance - even though I had had no context to put them in!
The story doesn't end there...
May 16th, 2012... The cattle had started coming back to pasture at the farm. I was delighted but I was really unwell at the time and on pain medication. I had taken everything that I could for pain that night and it had pretty much knocked me out. I crawled into bed early and my family all came to kiss me goodnight. Kent peeked out the bedroom window and "happened" to see a tiny little calf - the first one of the year! Despite being in my pajamas and in pain, I wanted to go and see it. Out we went - pj's and all. Being very unknowledgable about these things, we noticed a cow that had either just given birth or was about to. I recognized that we were out there for a reason because the circumstances surrounding us being out there were highly unlikely.
All of the sudden, the horses began chasing this poor cow! She'd lie down - to give birth - and they'd chase her to her feet. The tiny calf was intrigued and kept going between the horses legs. The calf's mother was distressed! It was not a good situation! We worked to get control of the now wild horses but for nearly 15 minutes, this cow tried to birth her calf and instead found herself running across the pasture. Finally, we had the horses corralled into another area and we watched as the cow labored. I found myself praying aloud for the safe arrival of the calf. I worried about how long the labor had been delayed and how much stress the prolonged process had had on the tiny baby. Out of nowhere, I found myself putting the Lord in remembrance (as we're instructed in Isaiah 62:6-7) of the words He had given me in Psalm 144. Finally, we watched in awe, as a new little calf entered the world! What a miracle! We watched speechless as this mother and another cow worked as a team to lick the sac off of the baby. How awesome to see how the Lord instructs nature! Though it wasn't until the next day that we saw this tiny little girl with the white face and chocolate colored body get to her feet, she had made it and we were extatic to have played a small role in the drama!
I laid in bed that night and gave thanks to the Lord for prompting us to be out there so that we could handle the horses and for allowing us to witness the miracle of birth. I continued to pray for her safety and drifted off to sleep.
Despite the medication, I awoke - wide awake - at the first crack of dawn! I poured myself a coffee and headed out to see how the baby had made the night. There were just the two cows and their calves in the corral area. They had stayed close to the barn. I talked to them as I gave them a wide berth but tried to get a closer look at the new baby. I knew the cows would be protective. I had also learned that they liked to let their babies lay down and rest for a couple of days before they joined the herd. When they started to bawl, I wondered why my somewhat distant watching was causing such a stir. Then as the new baby was forced to her feet and nudged to a trot, I saw a coyote just a few metres from where the baby had been lying. Not on my watch! In pajamas, with one hand holding a coffee cup, I chased that coyote out of the corral!
Do you know what I learned in all of this? I learned that the Lord is faithful to His Word. When He gives a promise, no matter how unlikely it appears to us, He means it. He knows what is to come. He's also able to use the most unlikely, unskilled, unknowledgable cast of characters - just like us - to play a part in the fulfillment of His plans. I don't know about you but that does something to me! When I take a look at some of the other promises that He has made me, some that seem too great to hope for, He has used this praiseworthy tale to bolster my faith! May He do the same for you!
"Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to Your Word"...
Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment
of what was spoken to her from the Lord.
Luke 1:38, 45
