The Face Off

Sandi and the guinnea (God rest his soul) facing off a few months ago!

If you are a first time reader, I suggest backtracking and reading the previous 2 posts.

With my heart as heavy as an anvil I drove out to the barn.  I hadn’t ridden Silas in 5 days and I’m supposed to be rehabilitating him from an injury.  Noone else was at the barn.  Sandi rarely misses a trip to see her brother, but as she sat in the vets office it was just Silas and I.  I groomed him, gave him treats and tacked him up.  We ambled up to the arena – neither of us in the mood to work – tightened the girth, swung up onto his back, walked about 10 steps, and started to sob.  Uncontrollably.  The kind of crying where you have to hiccup to breathe.  As much as I feared losing my dog, I feared the process.  I didn’t want to have to look at my dog and wonder every day if she would survive.  I didn’t want to watch her suffer.  But I also could never give up on her.  Silas just stood patiently underneath me.  As I cried I felt God ask me to share this with Him.  God is my rock, but is it not He who allowed this??  Through my tears I said, “I love you God, and I know you love me.  But how can I ask for help when I know You allowed this to happen?”  As I gasped for air we talked.  I cried to Him.  Why?  Why can I not have an animal die simply from old age like most people?  Why is it always so tragic?

Eventually I was able to breathe, and the tears stopped.  It was time to go and sweet Silas had barely even moved from that same spot.  We trotted around the ring a few times each direction and headed back down to the barn.

Not only was the disease itself horrible, but it would put a strain on our finances.  The testing would cost nearly $1000 before we even started treating, and with a baby on the way Joey and I are trying to be careful with our money.  On the way to pick Sandi up from the vet I called my friend Jen.  She listened as I rambled on and on about it.  We are in the same business which is how we met.  I blurted out, “the thing is, if I really put my mind to it I could make an extra $1000 this month and the money thing wouldn’t be a big deal.”  Suddenly things were put into perspective.  I felt better.

Sandi was happy to see me, and honestly looked like she’d had fun with all of her human friends at the clinic.  She loves people, and is so darn cute I’m sure the girls hardly leave her alone.

I went to bed that night with a peace in my heart.  God would take care of it, and I could make up for the extra $1000 by working extra hard this month.  Joey was out of town this week so I let Sandi sleep on the bed and she cuddled with me all night.  When we woke up the next morning she had a fire in her eyes.  She limped a tiny bit downstairs, but when we went out to potty her limp was gone!  I called the vet and asked them not to send off the tests.  By the evening she was sprinting down the stairs and attacking her pink gorilla.

I do not know what the future holds, but for now God has certainly healed my dog.    Thank you God!  All glory and honor to You!

“35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;

we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Romans 8:35-39

SOLI DEO GLORIA (Glory to God Alone),

Sarah

Book cover for the short story, Three Horses and a Wedding
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