Psalms 91:1-2
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.
The late afternoon sun felt as if it were mid-August instead of early April, and the sheep were not finished shedding their fleeces yet. Most would think that they had rather rest in the shade, but the flying insects seem to congregate there, so the sheep often chose the sunny spots to rest in. One particularly wooly little lamb could not grasp this concept, and seemed to be determined to convince her mother that shade is what they needed.
As the lamb would wander toward the trees , the mother would call her back while she calmly chewed her cud. The little one would flop down, and then get up, she would paw the ground, and pace back and forth as if to say, “It’s too hot! This is not where I want to be”.
Finally, the irritated youngster realized that there was a cool place where she could rest and be sheltered from the intense heat. Her mother’s shadow provided the perfect resting place that was both shady, and free from insects. As soon as she got close enough to her mother to benefit from the shade, she relaxed and fell asleep.
How many times have we asked God “Why”? Why do you have me in this uncomfortable place? Why can I not just go over here? Why can I not have it this way, or that way? Even for mature Christians, it is not always easy to see the shade tree, but to realize that for some reason God has us standing in the blazing heat. It is hard to remember that just as this ewe knows what is best for her lamb, our Shepherd knows what is best for us, and he does not change His plan based on our desires.
So then the question becomes, when we are wandering in a desert situation, are we going to be as wise as this little lamb and realize that we can rest in the shadow of the Most High? Will we remember that in our difficult times, if we draw close to God that he will shelter us? I pray today that this little lamb has reminded us that God IS our refuge, our fortress, our God, and in Him we can trust.