Fellowship

Yesterday I thought of a parallel of a time when we were in Idaho near the Sawtooth Mountains. The following is an excerpt of the time we rode horses in an area where our chances of seeing wolves were great. I will follow this excerpt with the life parallel that came to mind:

Once we were across the river, we started up some steep trails that went along the river for about a mile before turning towards the mountains. Since I wanted to take pictures along the way, I rode at the end of the line of horses. That way, I could stop to grab a shot, then catch up to the others. It was a beautiful place to ride.

The guide stopped near a clearing to show us some wolf tracks. I rode my horse over to where she was pointing. As I looked down at the paw prints, I could tell they were fresh, maybe less than an hour old. I was amazed at how large the wolf's paws were; they were about the same size as the hoof prints my horse was leaving. The guide told us that, with all of us together, the wolves probably would not show themselves, but if one of us got separated, they would follow the straggler in a pack, waiting for an opportunity to attack. So, we stayed together.

After a few hours of a wonderful ride, we started back down the mountain towards the river. As the land flattened out, we rode through a wooded area where we could see about 100 yards into the trees. I kept stopping to take pictures and would catch up with the others. I enjoyed letting the horse run to catch up. As we were going through that wooded area, I noticed my horse looking back. He saw fear in his eyes, which was something I had not seen before in a horse. I looked back but did not see anything. As we walked on, I saw something move fast through the trees about 30 yards away from us. I searched for what it might be, but did not see anything. My horse was getting nervous and wanted to keep closer to the group. I watched the trees on both sides of the trail and saw a shadow move, but could not tell what it was. Once we arrived at the river where everyone else was congregated, my horse seemed to calm down.

Yesterday, when I thought about this time in Idaho, I considered how that situation can apply to my life today. Here, I was separated from the other horses so I could take pictures. I saw shadows moving from tree to tree, as if something were running in pursuit but staying hidden. My horse showed fear, something I had never seen in a horse before. He wanted to run to catch up with the other horses because there is safety in numbers. I was in command and was not allowing him to do that, so I was putting both of us in danger from a pack of wolves. Once I realized our situation, I kicked with my heels, and the horse took off running to catch up to the others.

How many times, as Christians, do we not pay attention to the Holy Spirit when we are warned of the danger of sin? Do we always react to warnings? In the parallel I thought of, fellowship with other believers through church attendance and keeping up with each other to hold one another accountable is like my horse wanting to join the other horses. Joining the group kept him and his rider safe from the wolves.