The Barn is My Church
One of your readers shared these thoughts the other day. No matter what faith you follow, we think you will relate to her words and agree that we are incredibly blessed by the horses, the industry and the lessons we learn each day.
The Barn is My Church
by Sandi Hebig
The time driving to and from the barn is where I’m quiet and still enough to hear Gods whispers. “This is for a reason”, “You don’t understand now but you will” Then of course the tears and prayers follow.
My barn family gives me fellowship that God encourages. We show compassion to each other as we all face some of our most difficult days. The same compassion God asks us to show every person that needs it. We celebrate with each other on our highest achievements, share the feeling of hard work paying off and perseverance. God never wants to see us give up no matter how hard things get.
The earth angels that God sends to help us with our horses. They come in the form of farriers, massage therapists, vets, coaches, family members and other horsey friends. They arrive at just the right time or say just the right thing or pray the right prayer so I can get through the hard times. My heart bursts in gratitude for these people.
The injuries to our horses teach patience and how to give up control. So much of our life is out of our control. We try to force things
to happen in our time but God has his own calendar. Control is one of the hardest things to let go. I’m still working on that one!
Then there is that sorrel mare. The mare that has maybe shown me the most about God. She couldn’t just be anyone’s horse. She is insecure and stubborn. She refuses to do things the humans make her do. She humbles me when I get overconfident. Hmmm sounding very similar to me.
But then she begins to trust me. The trust grows and I change my ways of training so she understands. I stop trying to force her to do things but instead show her. She becomes a horse that protects me from falling off when my old ass is sliding off her bare back. She becomes the horse that’s heart is so big she carries me to a national title with a stick festering in her foot. So then I realize her subtle body language is similar to how subtle God speaks to us. We have to listen so He can show us the way. It’s the same way we have to listen to a horses eyes and observe their body language to hear their whispers.
Everyone that believes in God has a “church”. It maybe the real thing or it might somewhere like a barn.
Life isn’t easy but my church helps me through.