Like a Gazelle...

Yesterday, while at the park enjoying the swiftness and ease our grand daughters seemed to have on their small scooters, I took in the freedom they demonstrated because of the balance they have...the control of what pushes them forward. 

Then, our Lindsey, a mature young woman and the one that Warner calls "Momma", leapt upon the pump track and began waving her arms while running behind the girls on their scooters. They thought it hilarious, and Reagan (Meg's girl) labeled her "A Lindsey." "Look!, it's a Lindsey!" 😂

As she tired (one and a half times around the track), she jumped to the ground, and said..."Like a gazelle."

And...if you know me even a little, you know where my mind went. Immediately. "He makes my feet like hinds feet and sets me upon high places." ~Psalm 18:33

A hind, is a gazelle...like a female deer.

Everything seems to rotate around balance...

With balance, one becomes sure-footed. Foundational. Equipped to excel, even in the face of difficulty. Spiritual stability creates mental stability...mental stability creates worldly stability.

And who wouldn't want stability? I would much rather have solid ground than trying to walk of fluidity. It's the goal, however. To be able to walk upon injustice and the ever changing landscape of what life lays at our feet.

So, I look at the deer. Their agility. Their speed. Their balance. 

I have found a new appreciation for the deer that roam residential areas here, in NC. They have no problem coming up to the borders of your yard while they scope out the immediate dangers that may be present. Many times you must look hard to see them, as if they are camouflaged in their surroundings...until they choose to be seen. 

Once they determine your yard to be safe, your garden will become fodder for their hungry tummies...so, there must be a balance of what you allow, if you, yourself, want to enjoy the bounty you worked so hard to produce.

Our choice is always to set boundaries without doing harm to the deer. Not every human can be trusted to do that, however. And they can sense it. They do love a safe yard. One where they have no problem bringing their wobbly legged babies to...that soon become sure footed like a gazelle runs on mountain tops.

Soon, barriers mean nothing to a deer. They can leap over most obstacles without falling prey to animals that lay-in-wait for them to appear. Or to human predators. Because they are so quick and sure footed. Oh, to be like a gazelle...reaching high places, away from the dangers that want to over-take.

Mountain tops are great. Beautiful, even. Fresh...with less danger to encounter than in the valley.

However...nothing much grows on the mountain tops. To find life, one must ascend to the valley below. Where danger may be laying in wait. Yet, it's where one receives strength of body, and of mind. 

We are trained in the valley of despair. Of loneliness. Of difficulty. Where choices must be made to follow the crowd, or listen to what was instilled in us as we were being formed inside our mother's womb. 

We must never lose sight of that still, small voice that alerts us to danger, and directs us in the way we should go. The voice that helps us make difficult decisions because we understand right from wrong. Unless we have ignored it for too long, we'll always be guided to places that give life...instead of take life.

Timidity cannot survive, if a place of joy and security are desired. Yet, boldness and courage are born from adversity. Mentally, physically, and spiritually.

Living out our lives, we either learn to trust, or to run away from. Running is not always bad. Just as the deer in my yard run away if they think I am out to hurt them. 

But, when they are able to stand still and look me in the eye, they see I am harmless...or if I'm there to hurt them.

Facing our fears...enemies of our strength and looking them in the eye, so-to-speak, is a must. But only if we desire freedom more than living in fear. 

As always, here you will find me...in Mary's World

P.S. Habakkuk 3:19, Psalm 18:33, and Samuel 22:34, speaks of "hinds feet" and is used as a metaphor for divine strength and spiritual resilience. It symbolizes God giving a person the ability to rise above life's difficult obstacles, stand securely in high or dangerous place, and to move forward with joy and confidence rather than fear.

*Recommended reading: Hinds Feet Upon High Places by Hannah Hurnard