Making Friends
How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! Psalm 133:1 (NIV)
In our little herd of deer in Arnot, PA, we have five bucks but none of them look like this mule deer. If this big boy ever came for breakfast, I’d seriously freak out. I would be too afraid to move. Janet Holm McHenry (All God’s Creatures) tells us about a nosey buck that wanted to hang out and get close.
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The other day on our cattle ranch, I wound my husband, Craig, underneath a tractor and a buddy underneath the swather right next to him. The buddy wasn’t a mechanic, though; it was one of a mule deer herd, a full-grown buck with an eight-point rack. As I approached, the buck backed out from under the piece of equipment and ran off. Craig said he had been working all afternoon on that swather, which cuts hay, and the whole time the buck just rested there in the shade, watching him.
That didn’t surprise me much. Some herds have become so domesticated in our little mountain town in Sierra Valley that they think the nearby cattle ranches, and sometimes homes in town, are their foraging places. Some even hop over our tall backyard fence to see what’s for breakfast.
“I think he’s used to me now,” Craig said. “He seems curious about what I’m doing because he watches me continually. Maybe he even thinks I’m one of the herd.”
“But I’m not yet,” I joked. “I guess he’s got to get used to me.”
Later I realized this is true for people I meet. We are strangers at first encounter—perhaps a bit distant. But as we hang out together and get to know one another, walls of caution, judgment, or fear slip away.
I have found this to be especially true when I work with others. During one season, a dozen or more couples, including Craig and me, took on a church renovation project. Together, we refinished pews and wood floors, painted walls, and replaced windows and wood trim. The project was exhausting but satisfying—not only for the work we accomplished but also for the bonded friendships we formed.
Perhaps that eight-point buck truly felt he was working with Craig. In any case, I know my husband appreciated the company.
We share our mutual woes, our mutual burdens bear, and often for each other flows the sympathizing tear. —John Fawcett
Heavenly Father, thank You for bringing us into Your herd; for belonging to You. Please help us bond with each other in unity as we share the love of Jesus Christ with others. AMEN.