My Horse Whisperer

Watching a horse being trained has always been something that intrigues me and speaks to my heart.  My husband and I use to sit and watching training shows on RFDTV every Sunday afternoon and I always found many parallels to horse training and my Christian life.

The most special trainer is called a horse whisperer. A horse whisperer must have confidence and knowledge about what response he needs from the horse.  In other words, he must be experienced.  The whisperer must know the horse’s current training level and current experience level in relation to his goals.  He must also consider the horse’s temperament and his view of people.  If, for example, the horse has a negative view of people, it will take longer to regain his trust.

Knowing what type of training method to use is very important to the whisperer.  He has know know exactly which method is effective for that horse and  must be consistent in that method of training.

When the horse whisperer begins working with a horse who has never been ridden, he slowly introduces that horse to one thing at a time.  Throwing a saddle blanket on his back right off the bat will frighten the horse because he is not use to any sudden moves much less having any weight on his back.  A wise whisperer is patient with his horse.

As the horse and the his whisperer spend time working together, the horse begins to trust him.  He yields his will to the whisperer and follows his every command.

I am the horse and my horse whisperer is the Holy Spirit.  When I became a widow, I became this wild, unbroken horse, I went kicking and screaming into a new training ring. Sudden changes or movements frightened me.  I have bucked, stomped my hooves, thrown my head around, and neighed wildly in protest.  But the Holy Spirit,  my own personal trainer,  is experienced.  He knows my temperament and my view of people.  He understands me and knows exactly what method of training is going to be the most effective for me.  He has this deep and abiding love for me and is never going to leave me nor forsake me much less give up on me no matter how slow I am to learn.

When I stubbornly balk and paw the ground in protest, he patiently and lovingly calms me with his gentle voice knowing just what to say and then repeats the training again and again until I am ready to move on to the next thing that he wants to teach me.  As time goes by, I begin to very slowly learn to trust my personal trainer.

Is my training easy?  NO!  It’s very hard and not something that I would ever have chosen to go through.  Will it be worth it all?  My husband is shouting at me from heaven’s balcony,  “YES!! It will be worth it all someday when you see our Savior face to face!!”