"Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass. He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday." (Psalm 37: 5)

The story is told of an itinerant preacher who is traveling by horseback late one evening to a distant and unfamiliar Sunday morning venue. He feels a certain calm this quiet October evening while moving slowly under a breathtaking star-studded and moonlit sky. With soft 'thuds' echoing from his horses' hoofs, the preacher is praying and softly humming.

Then as he begins to mentally brush-up his message for the next morning, the horse suddenly trips, groans, and abruptly falters, throwing the minister forward and onto the cold, hard ground. As he sits up, he reaches up and feels a lump beginning to swell on his forehead. Then standing, he begins brushing the dirt and dust off of his clothing, and notices the reason for this tragedy, the horse had stepped into a gopher hole and injured itself. It became sadly apparent that his companion would not be able to continue the journey.

The minister removes his saddlebags, takes out a blanket and begins to prepare somewhat for the long night ahead. While doing so he finds himself questioning God, "How could You let this happen? Why didn't You do something to stop it? Now I'm not going to be there to deliver the message that You gave me; doesn't that matter to You?"

Having comforted his horse as best he could, he finally settled down to a restless and nearly sleepless night. He awoke at the first hint of dawn. As he sat up and began to rub his eyes, he winced as he felt the stinging pain of the lump on his forehead. He turned and checked and was gratified to see that his horse seemed better.

As he stood and looked in the direction of where his horse would have taken him had it not been for the 'accident', he was shocked at what he saw. Just 100 yards ahead was a sheer drop off. He cautiously approached it and peeked over the edge and was aghast. He was looking at a cliff face of at least 200 feet in depth with a large pile of rocks at its base. He quickly began to praise and thank God as he realized that had his horse not stepped into that gopher hole, both of them would have suffered a gruesome and tragic death.

The 2008 adventure has just begun. Let us remember as we journey onward; God is in our 'stops' as well as He is in our 'steps'. Luke 1:37

"The steps [and 'stops'] of a good man are ordered by the Lord, and He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord upholds him with His hand." (Psalm 37:20) - [emphasis added]

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