“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6
Spirit was born among a group of traveling show horses. At the age of six months, Spirit’s parents were taken away to perform. He was left all lone wondering if he’ll ever see his parents again. Spirit was sad and feeling lonely until the day he noticed something coming from the forest. It was big and dark and looked like it was more than one. To his surprise, out came six large dark colored cows. Spirit didn’t know rather to run or introduce himself. The cow leader walked towards Spirit to find out who this lonely horse was. As Spirit told the cow his sad story, the cow leader returned to chat with the other five cows. They all agreed and invited
Spirit to join their herd. Spirit was a little scared but decided to follow the herd. They traveled all over the mountains of Wyoming and Montana enjoying each others company. Even though the cows were different from Spirit, they treated him like family and Spirit was full of joy. He finally felt like part of the family.
“The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” Matthew 7:25
When Sterling was born a normal healthy colt. Soon after learning to walk it became apparent that something was wrong. He walked different from all the other colts. His legs were extremely week and he fell anytime he tried to trot. The doctors later determined that he had Muscular Dystrophy. As time passed Sterling was not able to walk anymore and put into a special horse chair on wheels .He isolated himself from all the other horses and watched them as they ran around the pasture. Sterling was sinking deeper into his isolation and knew this was no way to live. He was missing precious life moments and needed to change his ways. He prayed that God would show him how to focus on his strengths rather than his disability. The next day Sterling wheeled himself out to the pasture to visit with all the other horses. The herd gather around his chair as he told them some jokes. Sterling was quiet a funny little horse. Every day, the herd waited for him to come visit. God used Sterling to bring laughter into the herd. Sterling continued to spend time with the herd and lived a very full-filled life.
“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” Colossians 4:2
It was a beautiful spring day with all the flowers in bloom and poor Shiba had to stay inside her stall. Shiba was born with severe allergies to flowers that bloomed all over the pasture. All she wanted to do was run through the pastures with all the other horses. Shiba thought that there must be a way to be able to run and play without having these horrible allergy attacks. It was not fun sneezing and itching all over! Shiba could not stay inside any longer. She slowly walked outside onto the pasture looking carefully around for flowers. As she started to trot she noticed a group of wild flowers. She kept her eyes on them and walked around carefully not to get too close. She continued to be watchful of any flowers throughout the pasture. By the end of the day, Shiba has successfully stayed out in pasture without any sneezing or itching. She learned that she can do things as long as she is watchful and this made Shiba McBiba very happy.
“The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing, while the soul of the diligent is richly supplied.” Proverbs 13:4
Locks was born with a learning disability where it took him longer to learn than the regular horse. His dream was to be a jumper, but he had trouble understanding how to physically do this. Many times he tried and would always fall. He asked for help from another horse name Willard, who was a jumping champion. Willard spent many days teaching Locks the steps needed to create a good jump. With lots of patience and effort, Locks tried practicing a jump over a small pole on the ground. He tripped a couple of times, then finally jumped right over the pole. Willard continued to help Locks everyday for the next two weeks. Then the day came when it was time to jump a fence. Locks was very nervous, but Willard had faith in him. “You must believe in yourself,” said Willard. As Locks begin to gallop the fence was getting closer and closer. Remembering all the hard work he put in and having confidence, Locks jumped into the air and landed on the other side of the fence. Locks and Willard both shouted with joy. Locks had now become the jumper he always dreamed of becoming.
“If the iron is blunt, and one does not sharpen the edge, he must use more strength, but wisdom helps one to succeed.” Ecclesiastes 10:10
Lilz is a beautiful show horse who was born def. None of the other horses believed she would be able to show. One day, a rider jumped on her to see how she would react. To his surprise, Lilz actually knew what to do. Even though she could not hear, she could feel every touch and new which way to go and when to stop. A month later, Lilz competed in her first reining competition and won! She continued winning in her competitions for the next two years until she became pregnant. Lilz ended up giving birth to an adorable colt who was also def. As the colt grew, Lilz would teach him how to use his sense of feel for riding. At the age of three, Lilz’s son became the national champion reining horse! She taught him that there is always a way to succeed if you focus on what you have instead of what you don’t have.
“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1)
Dunn was the smallest horse on the pasture with a big heart. At the age of five he was able to finally join the herd’s soccer team. Even though he was small, he gave 100% at every practice. One day a large horse named Mac started teasing him because he was small. Dunn tried to walk away but Mac followed him and pushed him into a bush. Everyday Mac would make fun of him and follow him home. Dunn always tried to run home as fast as he could to get away from Mac. This bully was giving Dunn nightmares and causing him to be afraid. Dunn prayed to be brave and asked God to soften Mac’s heart. The next day Mac followed him when Dunn turned around and told Mac to leave him alone. Mac laughed and pushed him. Dunn got up and stood tall. Mac was a bit surprised that he did not run this time. Dunn looked him in the eyes and said that there will be no more bullying. Mac turned and trotted off never to bully Dunn again. Dunn knew that God would be with him just like He was with David when he conquered Goliath.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:6-7)
Poor little Annie was one of the most fearful horses in the pasture. Every time she got around another horse in the herd she would start shaking and not be able to speak. Needless to say, this cause her to have no friends. Annie prayed to God for help because she was becoming sad. The next day a new horse came to the ranch named Sally. Sally was very outgoing and had no trouble fitting in with the herd. She noticed Annie and went to introduce herself. Annie told her she was very scared to be around the herd. Sally told her that she would take her out into the herd and be right by her side when she felt scared or nervous. Having a new friend like Sally, Annie would follow her to the herd each day. As time passed, Annie felt comfortable with the herd. She was actually beginning to make new friends in the herd and liked it.