The Duck Wrangler
Answer me speedily, O LORD; My spirit fails! Do not hide Your face from me, lest I be like those who go down into the pit. Psalm 143:7 (NKJV)
How tiny is this vulnerable little creature! It fits securely in the palm of the holder’s hand. The devotion below, written by Tracy Crump (All God’s Creatures) helped me realize how safe we feel in His hands. Let’s face it, we make some unwise decisions and do some stupid stuff. However, He lifts us out of our messes and shows us a better way. Enjoy Tracy’s message.
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When my son’s neighbor heard faint quacking from a drainpipe in front of their houses, she called animal control and alerted Jeremy. Overnight downpours had washed ten newly hatched ducklings into the storm drain. After Jeremy helped the control officer remove grating that covered the sewer, they spied the ducklings huddled at the bottom. The hatchlings were too far away to reach, and neither of the adults could fit into the drain.
Our nine-year-old granddaughter saved the day. Nellie donned her rain boots and climbed down a ladder into the dark, narrow sewer. She wrestled the ducklings one by one into a laundry basket and handed them up to her dad. Together, they took the fluffy brown-and-yellow babies back to the lake behind their house. When they couldn’t find the mother duck, who often fed in Jeremy’s back yard, another female mallard showed interest. Soon the ducklings swam off with their adopted mom, obviously happy to be free again.
What a nail-biter rescue! I’m not sure anyone could have convinced me to squeeze into a dark pit the way Nellie did. But then, how many times do I stumble into pits, sometimes of my own making? I think about years of barely keeping up with credit-card payments when I unwisely overcharged. Seeing interest pile on every month helped me understand the psalmist’s cry, “My spirit fails!” Fortunately, God kept me from sliding any deeper into debt. He put my feet on firm ground, and I was grateful, just as the ducklings were, to escape that pit.
Nellie’s mom dubbed her the duck wrangler. I’m so glad she showed up to help the ducklings just as God showed up for me. As Nellie said, it was a pro-DUCK-tive day.
Loving Lord, thank You for rescuing me from myself! Please help us avoid the pits in life by pressing in closer to You. You alone are our Savior. AMEN.