Not too far from our Narrows Community Church is a field and some years back it had two horses in it. If you would look from a distance, each horse looked like any other horse. But if you stop your car, or were walking by, you would have noticed something quite amazing...
If you were to look into the eyes of one of those horses, you would have seen that he was blind. His owner had chosen not to have him put down, but had made a good home for him. Then, if you stood nearby and listened, you would have heard the sound of a bell. As you would look around for the source of the sound, you would have seen that it came from the smaller horse in that same field.
Attached to the smaller horse's halter was a small bell. It let the blind friend know where the other horse was, so he could follow. As you would stand and watch these two friends, you would see that the horse with the bell was always checking on the blind horse, and that the blind horse would listen for the bell and then slowly walk to where the other horse was, trusting that he will not be led astray. When the horse with the bell returned to the shelter of the barn each evening, it would stop occasionally and look back, making sure that the blind friend wasn't too far behind to hear the bell.
Like the owners of these two horses, God does not throw us away just because we are not perfect or because we have problems or challenges. He watches over us and even brings others into our lives, to help us when we are in need.
If we pause in our hectic pace of life, sometimes we are like the blind horse being guided by the little ringing bell of those who God places in our lives. Other times we are like the guide horse, helping others to find their way.
Good friends are like that... You may not always see them, but you know they are always there.
Remember: Live simply, Love generously, Care deeply, Speak kindly.......
And leave the rest to God!