In Reflection ~ It’s Not a Trap

I brought Reecie to the barn, put her in a stall, and brushed her while we waited for Julie to arrive for my lesson.

We enjoyed the soft sounds of a peaceful summer evening at a horse barn as the flies droned, Reecie’s tail swished, and my brush glided over her smooth, glistening, summer coat.

Julie arrived for our lesson, but as I led Reecie from the stall, she bolted out and almost ran me over. For the next twenty minutes, or so, Julie and I worked on teaching Reecie to exit the stall quietly, without barging out.

I held Reecie’s lead rope and walked through the doorway first. With a whip pressed against her chest as a barrier, I signaled her to wait at the doorway until I said, “Walk.”

At Julie’s suggestion, sometimes I let Reecie step out with her front feet, said, “whoa” and made her wait before letting her walk out the rest of the way. Other times, Julie told me to let Reecie come part way out, then ask her to “back.” This taught Reecie she couldn’t anticipate what I wanted and act before I asked.

I imagined Reecie felt confined in the stall doorway, at first, and she might have wanted to leave that “trap” in a hurry. But that’s no excuse. Horses are NOT allowed to trample over people. She needed to learn to trust me to keep her safe as she entered, and exited, enclosed spaces.

In Reflection ~

Sometimes we feel like circumstances have us trapped, closed in, and like Reecie, we want to leave in a hurry too.

But God’s word says, “…you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear guard,” Isaiah 52:12 (NIV).

I’ve found this verse to be comforting…the very idea of God being in front of us, leading the way, AND behind us, protecting us from the world around us …. We have no need to feel trapped. Just like Reecie had no need to feel trapped when I led her from her stall. She only needed to be respectful of my person, my space, and obedient to my request to enter, and exit, the stall quietly.

Life WITH the LORD, being obedient to His leading, isn’t a trap either. Like my instructions to Reecie, His commands guide us in showing Him our respect, making good life choices, and to live peacefully, without trampling others.

God Speaks

A recent conversation with my son James took a turn to religious topics, as it often does. He asked, “How can you believe in the Bible when it was written centuries ago? Why isn’t God, if there is a God, still talking to men today? How come nothing new has been written?”

My answer, without a lot of thought, and knowing a full-blown debate would be futile, said, “Because the entire story has already been written.”

The story, the truth, of the Messiah – from “in the beginning” to “come quickly”, Genesis to the Revelation is complete. The Aleph and the the Tav, Alpha and Omega, from A to Z, the full truth of Jesus Christ / Yeshua Hamashiach / the Messiah is laid out before us in His written word.

It is finished.

The Law, the Prophets, the Poetry, the Gospels, the Acts of the Apostles, the Letters, the Revelation – the writing is finished. The redemption mission of Jesus is finished. The prophecies of the future ~ of the Restoration, God’s Kingdom to come ~ are included in the words of God that have already been written.

Yet … I still wrestled with James’ question, and asked God some of my own – Why haven’t there been additional writings? What is it that makes “now” different from “then”? Why don’t we still have prophets to speak the word of God?

BECAUSE Jesus came, in fulfillment of the prophecies of redemption, because we HAVE the Holy Spirit, because Yeshua WILL return to fulfill the prophecies written of restoration.

“And behold, I am coming quickly, Blessed is he who heeds the words of the prophecy of this book,” Revelation 22:7 (NASB95).

His people ARE the temple, so God communes with us individually, He COMMUNICATES with us one on one – through His written word that we call the Holy Bible, letting us read what went before to teach us, to guide us, to instruct us, even to reprimand and chastise us when we turn from Him. We COMMUNICATE with Him through our prayers, and through our obedience to His written words.

“You shall follow the Lord your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments, listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him,” Deuteronomy 13:4 (NASB).

God reveals Himself through His creation, through other people, through His written word, by the very power He displays in the very sustaining of LIFE. Without God, the earth, the universe, would still be “formless,” “void,” an utter darkness. With Him it glows with light, the earth “teems with life.”

So, James asked, “Why doesn’t God talk to men now?”

God DOES, but it’s up to us to listen. We can’t hear Him if we’re ignoring Him or attempting to drown Him out, like a rebellious child with her fingers in her ears, chanting “la, la, la, la.”

The question is NOT– Why isn’t God Speaking?

The REAL question is —

Are we listening?

In Reflection ~ For Father’s Day

During a lesson with Julie, we added ground driving to our training. Julie commented, “Reecie seems willing to work in the round pen.”

Though at first, Reecie darted forward, not understanding the pressure of the lines, the bridle. Julie instructed me to walk near Reecie’s head as a guide while she continued the lesson the with the lines. After making a few circles around the pen, I dropped back to walk next to Julie. Reecie now understood enough to continue forward at a walk.

For the next part of the lesson, Julie took the long lines off Reecie’s bridle and attached the reins. Standing at Reecie’s shoulder, holding one rein in each hand, Julie squeezed her hands closed and held them that way. After a moment, or two, Reecie lowered her head slightly. Julie opened her hands and explained that this release rewarded Reecie for “giving the right answer”. It was my reward when later, Julie said, “I’m pleased. it’s noticeable you really enjoy Reecie.”

Julie also showed me exercises, lateral flexions, to ask Reecie to bend her neck and turn her head to either side. The purpose of these exercises is to help improve the horse’s suppleness and flexibility. And when distractions occur, they’re useful for regaining focus and attention, for both horse and rider.

After I practiced the lateral flexions, we returned to ground driving again, this time with me handling the long lines. Julie assigned homework for me to practice the ground driving as well as lateral, and vertical, flexions. My goals were to concentrate on clear communication and the timing of the release/reward. Reecie’s improved suppleness and forward movement told me when I did them correctly.

In Reflection ~

Sometimes we don’t know what we don’t know. Often, we try to rely on previous experiences, or what we thought we knew, what we’d been taught, but end up “getting bucked off.”

Having someone wiser to teach us can keep us safe and offers its own rewards. It’s why I hired Julie. But we have to be willing to put in the work, to learn. Like Reecie was willing to learn. Ultimately, Reecie was the answer to one of my father’s instructions, “You should get a young horse so you can train it the way you want.”

However, learning from the word of God is the best teaching of all. And as our true, perfect Father, He IS our greatest reward.

Listen, my sons, to a father’s instruction; pay attention and gain understanding. I give you sound learning, so do not forsake my teaching,” Proverbs 4:1-2 (NIV).

In Reflection ~ Changing Direction

Reecie bucked me off (see blog post — In Reflection ~ But…I Want to Ride, published Jan 2023)

I need some help. I don’t have a clue how to fix this. 

I asked some friends at the barn for possible solutions and the best advice was, “You should hire Julie Sessions. She can help.” 

So I gave Julie a call, hired her as my riding instructor, my trainer, my mentor. Added bonus she’s also now a good friend. 

We started Reecie’s training over, from the ground. Sandy had done a great job with those first few rides, but I didn’t have Sandy’s knowledge or judgment to continue riding a “green” horse. There were holes in my training that needed filled before I could adequately train Reecie to be a reliable saddle horse. 

Julie gave me tips on the proper use of the round pen as a tool in our training. How to keep myself, and my horse, safe while we worked and played. She demonstrated how to tell Reecie my desired direction of travel. This is done by using body language (the language horses understand the best) and with words (voice commands). 

We discussed, and practiced both languages as commands for speeding up, slowing down, changing gaits, and the all-important word – Whoa.  

Through Julie’s instruction I learned that my commands (my body language and my words) need to be clear, consistent. For example, to instruct Reecie to slow down I stepped toward the front portion of her body.

To signal a turn, I stepped ahead of her, into her path, and raised my arm pointing the other direction. My position affected Reecie’s.

Julie assigned homework to me after each week’s lesson. I journaled the lessons and the homework, to consult with her later, record questions, list AHA moments when things would finally sink into my brain.  

During the homework assignment, sometimes I used a halter and long rope with Reecie to provide a physical connection with each other. 

In Reflection — 

I needed help with my horse. My way of training her wasn’t working. I had to change ….

My horse didn’t understand why I wanted her to turn and go the other way, but she changed direction when I stepped into her path. When my commands were clear, and consistent. 

Do I recognize, and understand God’s commands? Do I change direction when He steps into my path, to guide me in a different way?  

How is your response to God’s guidance of where He wants you to go? Are you listening to His voice, through His written word? His instructions are to train us in His ways, and to keep us safe under His guidance. He wants us to follow Him, even if that means we have to Change Direction.

“It changes direction, turning around by His guidance, that it may do whatever He commands it on the face of the inhabited earth. Whether for correction, or for His world, Or for lovingkindness….” Job 37:12, 13(NASB).