LESSON LEARNED FROM A DONKEY

Untie Your Rope and Run Free

March 9^th usually comes and goes around here with lots of arguments. It’s John’s birthday. Every year I buy things he won’t wear or won’t use. Birkenstock sandals sit on the bottom of his closet still in the box. Yankee’s tee shirts, Sriracha sauce tee shirts, Boston tee shirts; all hang in the closet unworn. He doesn’t even like cake. He’s a birthday Grinch but I can’t let it go. It’s not in me, so the fight continues.

Then came Yolanda! This year I had a stroke of genius! You might have noticed that the OK (Heartline property) is filling up with animals as well as people. Students have to walk around ducklings, run from a nasty turkey, avoid sheep droppings, and put up with wandering goats as they come and go from school. The city boy has turned farmer in his old age!

I called Kelly, the world’s most fascinating veterinarian, and asked if she could find John a donkey for his birthday. Within an hour she had a just weaned female donkey and was bringing her home. On the big day Kelly arrived with Yolanda sporting a giant birthday bow! Yolanda became the gift of all birthday gifts and John loves her.

 Every day I get the Yolanda report. She brays when she sees his truck. She nuzzles up to him, she shows affection. She gives him the cold shoulder for whatever it was that hurt her donkey feelings. This beast of burden carries none. She’s all joy and spends her days eating grass and mangoes. She turns down carrot peels and whatever else doesn’t suit her fancy.

Maxeau, the animal guy around the OK, tied Yolanda up when she arrived allowing her several feet to move and graze. He would periodically move her around. John put up with this for several weeks but then on Saturday he decided to cut her loose and see what would happen. As soon as she realized she was free, Yolanda ran in circles, ran up and down the length of the property using atrophied muscles, she kicked up her heels and sprinted free. The beast of burden was doing what she was born to do. Freedom! She exhausted herself with the joy of chase and ran and ran and ran.  Had she never run before? Once free she did what we all do when set free – run for joy!

What are the ropes that bind us? What strangles us and keeps us from going only so far? What holds us back? Are we tied to a tree with fear, lack of faith, lack of confidence, lack of knowing who we are? Don’t we know that Jesus untied the rope and set us free to run? Are our muscles atrophied from lack of use?

God spoke through a donkey once, maybe he’s doing it again. Cut your rope and let your faith run wild. Who knows where you might go!

Beth McHoul

www.heartlineministries.org