His will is our hiding place.
CORRIE TEN BOOM
Sharon loves to fish. She doesn’t mind fishing alone—that is, without other people—but she always takes Boomer, her 120-pound Great Pyrenees. Boomer is a great companion and protector.
One day Sharon and Boomer were fishing up high in the Kern River Canyon in Central California. This area is part of the Sequoia National Forest. Various types of wildlife may be found there, including coyotes, bears, cougars, and snakes.
Sharon was doing pretty well with her fishing, but Boomer seemed very nervous about their surroundings. Sharon ignored Boomer’s concern at first, carefully climbing down the hill to fish closer to the water. That was when she heard strange sounds. She thought maybe she had better heed Boomer’s cautionary behavior. She climbed back up the hill, Boomer sticking very close. Sharon figured they were out of harm’s way so she stood on a bridge and dropped her line into the water once more. Boomer began acting even more nervous, and started trying to nudge her closer to her car. When she finally reeled up her line and started walking, Boomer gently put his mouth on her wrist and pulled her to her vehicle.
Once they were on their way down the hill, Boomer relaxed and Sharon felt that maybe he had saved her from some serious harm. That night she heard that there was a cougar attack right where they had been fishing. Because Boomer had warned her of danger on other fishing trips, she knew she needed to pay attention when his nervousness persisted. She believes he would have fought and maybe given his life to save hers.
Boomer the dog was his master’s keeper. My husband, Steve, is mine. He always tries to keep me safe. He did that yesterday when we took what I thought was a rather dangerous trip. Steve is a farmer and oversees many acres of land. He took me with him to a field where some farm work was being done way out in the middle of nowhere. There is a paved road for most of the way. But then, to get to the field, we had to drive on a road filled with very sticky mud.
I could see the danger in driving this road. It would have been impossible without a four-wheel-drive vehicle. This, of course, was what we had. Still, if I had been alone there was no way I would have even attempted it. But for Steve, it was old hat. He knew he could keep me safe and he thought it would be an adventure for me. So he just said, “Hold on, here we go!” Once we started, there was no stopping until the end. If we had stopped, we would have been horribly stuck in the heavy mud. I held on, prayed, screamed at times—and we both laughed, knowing Steve was a capable driver.
When we reached our destination, our truck was covered in mud. We could hardly see out the windows! Steve took care of his business and we visited with two other workers, George and Lupe, who laughed at me when I told them of our adventure. Then we took a less exciting route back to the main road and traveled thirty miles to our home. The danger I had sensed was real, but I had been safe in the hands of someone who knew how to handle such peril.
Many centuries ago, the Israelite prophet Elisha was in peril. The king of Israel was at war with the king of Aram. God had been giving Elisha intelligence about the Aramean army’s movements that allowed Israel to keep foiling their efforts. When the king of Aram found out, he ordered his men to locate Elisha so he could capture the prophet. They discovered Elisha was in the city of Dothan.
A strong army was sent to Dothan. Elisha’s servant woke up the next morning and saw these enemy forces surrounding the city. He was terrified at this danger. But Elisha knew that God was keeping him safe. He told his servant, “‘Don’t be afraid…Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.’ And Elisha prayed, ‘Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.’ Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha” (2 Kings 6:16-17).
God delivered this huge army into Elisha’s hands. Elisha persuaded Israel’s king not to kill them. Instead, they feasted and were sent home to tell their king what had happened. His raids on Israel’s territory stopped.
Boomer’s job was to take care of Sharon, and he did it as well as a dog could. Steve loves me and does his best to keep me safe. But they aren’t all-powerful like God is. No matter what dangers we may face, if we trust God and stick to His path, He will keep us safe in Him.
We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about the troubles we experienced in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. He has delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us again (2 Corinthians 1:8-10).
Has a pet or human ever saved you from danger? What happened? What did you learn? Has God ever kept you from sliding down a dangerous path? How did this influence your faith?