As the Deer
{Thank you for subscribing to First Light. I always pray that God will use the writing to be a blessing, encouragement, and help to you in your spiritual walk. Feel free to share them with others. There is never an obligation to become a paid subscriber, but if you are – thank you for your support. It means a lot}
I set my fishing rod over the fence, doubled over at the waist, and slowly eased my way through the middle strands of barbed wire, being careful not to snag my shirt on the barbs below my belly or above my back. On a recent exploratory hike, I discovered a pond hidden away among the blackjack oaks, redbuds, and brier bushes of long-abandoned farmland.
I had been permitted to explore and fish, but not hunt the property. After finding this pond several weeks prior, I was curious as to whether or not it would be a good fishing spot. So, I made my way through the tangled web of former pastureland now overtaken with the native brush, following deer trails as much as possible to avoid the snags of blackberry vines and brier bushes.
At the pond I started making my way around its banks, casting and working a plastic worm over and around trees that had fallen into its waters. Then, while standing on the pond dam bank, I heard a loud snorting noise. Looking up and around I couldn’t see and couldn’t imagine what was making that sound. Then, my eyes adjusted to the light on the far side of the pond, and there among the trees on the far side of the pond was a large whitetail deer buck.
He had his head down and was looking right at me. Once again, he made a loud snorting noise. It took me a minute to figure out what he was up to. He was thirsty. This was his watering hole. He wanted me to move. To test my theory, I walked down the bank of the pond, away from the buck, stopped, and waited for a few minutes, watching to see what he would do.
Sure enough, the buck slowly walked up the pond, keeping an eye on me the whole time, and cautiously lowered his head to the water, thirstily drinking up the water. When he finished, he casually retreated into the thicket and left the pond for me to continue my fishing expedition.
As I began casting my line again and was thinking about the way that buck dealt with my presence, I was reminded of the Psalmist’s analogy:
As the deer pants after the water brooks, so my soul pants after you, O God. (Psalm 42:1)
That buck was willing to take the risk of approaching me for the sake of quenching his thirst. He was focused on achieving one thing…drinking from the waters where he regularly found satisfaction. I wondered and prayed that my desire for God would be something like that – intense, focused, unshakable, and willing to take risks when necessary. I pray that like the deer, I keep coming back over and over again to the One whom I know can satisfy my soul.
Book material!