And That's Why You Can't Reason With A Horse
Title: And That's Why You Can't Reason With A Horse
Category: Devotions
Subject: Control
And That’s Why You Can’t Reason With A Horse
Dr. Vincent D. Hefner, Pastor
First Baptist Church
Cherryville, North Carolina
Growing up in the country I had the privilege of owning dirt bikes, hunting dogs, and game chickens. That was a wonderful life for a young man, but my little sister did not have any interest in my hobbies. She wanted a horse, and being the baby of the family, she got one. The horse was named Betty, and she was the perfect pet for my sister, Vicky. That’s right, my mother named her three children, Van, Vince, and Vicky. I guess it could have been worse.
Anyway, back to the horse named Betty. It was a Saturday afternoon and I was in the mood to try something new, like ride that horse. I went through the proper channels of getting permission from my little sister to take Betty for a ride in the country. Even though I had never ridden a horse, I figured if my little sister could do it, so could I. When my sister tried to put the saddle on Betty, she (Betty) filled her lungs with air so the saddle would not fit. Well, that is the story my sister gave to me. She told me that Betty did not want to be ridden that day. I told my sister I didn’t need a saddle and that I would ride Betty bare back. Since I had never ridden with a saddle, I thought I would never miss it. I was wrong. I jumped on Betty’s back, grabbed the reigns from my sister and told Betty to “Getty up!” I knew a trail that I wanted to ride and if I took it slow, Betty would enjoy the outing as much as me.
Friends, that horse did not want to be ridden, at least by me. As we ambled up the trail, she made sure I hit every limb on the way. By the time we had come to the end of the trail and had to turn back, I was convinced that I was not in control. I told Betty we would take the old logging road back to the house, and I would put her out to pasture. Then I did something that I regret till this day. I let go of the reigns and held on to Betty’s mane, or hair, or whatever you call it. Up to this point, Betty had not even broken in to a trot, but all of a sudden she threw her ears straight back and started to run as if she was in a race. I thought she would get tired of running and return to an amble. She didn’t. She just ran faster and faster, and I couldn’t retrieve the reigns. I screamed, “Slow Down Betty,” “Woe Betty,” “Please slow down Betty,” but nothing worked. That’s when you can’t reason with a horse, because you don’t have the reigns in your hands. As we approached the end of the logging trail, I knew we were going to cross a road than a 10 foot ditch. At full speed I knew that Betty and I would not survive the ditch. If I lived, how would I explain to my sister how I killed her horse? As fate would have it, when I saw the road, my stepbrother was the entrance watching us come at neck break speed. Then he did something I did not understand. He took off his hat and started waving it back and forth in the air. You know what? When we arrived at my stepbrother, Betty came to a full stop! As I jumped off Betty, I grabbed the reigns and walked her back to barn. That was the last time I rode Betty bare back, side saddle, or regular saddle!
I later found out that the reigns are the key to controlling a horse. If you drop the reigns, the horse is in control and it has been proven you can’t reason with a horse under those conditions. This same principle can be applied to our lives when Jesus is not our Lord. If He does not have the reigns of our hearts in His hands, we are on a runaway path to doom and destruction. When Jesus is in His rightful place in our hearts, He will lead us safely home. Hebrews 4:14 says, “That is why we have a great High Priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God. Let us cling to Him and never Stop trusting Him. (NLT) Remember, don’t give in to sin. Think about it!
Dr. Vincent D. Hefner, Pastor
First Baptist Church
Cherryville, North Carolina
Growing up in the country I had the privilege of owning dirt bikes, hunting dogs, and game chickens. That was a wonderful life for a young man, but my little sister did not have any interest in my hobbies. She wanted a horse, and being the baby of the family, she got one. The horse was named Betty, and she was the perfect pet for my sister, Vicky. That’s right, my mother named her three children, Van, Vince, and Vicky. I guess it could have been worse.
Anyway, back to the horse named Betty. It was a Saturday afternoon and I was in the mood to try something new, like ride that horse. I went through the proper channels of getting permission from my little sister to take Betty for a ride in the country. Even though I had never ridden a horse, I figured if my little sister could do it, so could I. When my sister tried to put the saddle on Betty, she (Betty) filled her lungs with air so the saddle would not fit. Well, that is the story my sister gave to me. She told me that Betty did not want to be ridden that day. I told my sister I didn’t need a saddle and that I would ride Betty bare back. Since I had never ridden with a saddle, I thought I would never miss it. I was wrong. I jumped on Betty’s back, grabbed the reigns from my sister and told Betty to “Getty up!” I knew a trail that I wanted to ride and if I took it slow, Betty would enjoy the outing as much as me.
Friends, that horse did not want to be ridden, at least by me. As we ambled up the trail, she made sure I hit every limb on the way. By the time we had come to the end of the trail and had to turn back, I was convinced that I was not in control. I told Betty we would take the old logging road back to the house, and I would put her out to pasture. Then I did something that I regret till this day. I let go of the reigns and held on to Betty’s mane, or hair, or whatever you call it. Up to this point, Betty had not even broken in to a trot, but all of a sudden she threw her ears straight back and started to run as if she was in a race. I thought she would get tired of running and return to an amble. She didn’t. She just ran faster and faster, and I couldn’t retrieve the reigns. I screamed, “Slow Down Betty,” “Woe Betty,” “Please slow down Betty,” but nothing worked. That’s when you can’t reason with a horse, because you don’t have the reigns in your hands. As we approached the end of the logging trail, I knew we were going to cross a road than a 10 foot ditch. At full speed I knew that Betty and I would not survive the ditch. If I lived, how would I explain to my sister how I killed her horse? As fate would have it, when I saw the road, my stepbrother was the entrance watching us come at neck break speed. Then he did something I did not understand. He took off his hat and started waving it back and forth in the air. You know what? When we arrived at my stepbrother, Betty came to a full stop! As I jumped off Betty, I grabbed the reigns and walked her back to barn. That was the last time I rode Betty bare back, side saddle, or regular saddle!
I later found out that the reigns are the key to controlling a horse. If you drop the reigns, the horse is in control and it has been proven you can’t reason with a horse under those conditions. This same principle can be applied to our lives when Jesus is not our Lord. If He does not have the reigns of our hearts in His hands, we are on a runaway path to doom and destruction. When Jesus is in His rightful place in our hearts, He will lead us safely home. Hebrews 4:14 says, “That is why we have a great High Priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God. Let us cling to Him and never Stop trusting Him. (NLT) Remember, don’t give in to sin. Think about it!
