Psalm 43:5~The Health of my Countenance

Pepper Jasmine and the twin baby that lived

Dear readers,

The Psalmist writes:

"Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God."

Are you cast down today?

For many Memorial Day is difficult, and we go about the time with thoughts and reflections of our loved ones who have gone to the Great Beyond.

I love this part of the above verse, "hope in God: for I shall yet praise him,"

There is absolutely nothing wrong with lamenting for our loved ones who have died. It is our need to lament that brings us to a healthier healing place. If we don't grieve, we become sick. Think of this part of the verse: "for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God."

God needs us to shed tears, so let them flow and a sense of relief shall follow. Keeping God in the equation of our grief brings hope like no other. Afterward, we can praise Him, and let the cycle of tears and praise repeat itself to bring about our growth in a stronger faith in Lord God.That equals a better relationship with Him.

Even the animal kingdom needs to time to say goodbye, although their time for grief is much shorter.

On December 29, 2012, our first goat birth on our farm brought a set of twins. The younger twin did not thrive and within twenty-four hours I knew he would not make it. He lay in a box next to our wood stove to keep him warm and so I could feed him. When I checked on him at 3:30 a.m., he was struggling to breath.

I wrapped him in his towel and lay him in the barn before his mother Pepper Jasmine. At 7:15 a.m., I came back to find Pepper and the other twin standing over him, heads bent close to him. He had stopped breathing. What surprised me? The mother goat had decided to finish her job of licking him clean. I had taken a matted, dull-coated baby to Pepper and his coat had a beautiful sheen.

Pepper gazed up at me. I picked up the baby and took him from her and his brother. Pepper didn't cry, as I left the barn. She never cried at all. I thought nothing of that, until a few days later. An experienced goat farmer told me that had I not taken the baby back to be with his mother before he died, she would have cried for days. This way, she saw him out of this world and said her goodbyes. Pepper knew he no longer breathed. 

I will never forget that experience with my goats, and as a mood of disquiet comes upon me as it so often does for I miss my son, Joshua, I will rush to Jesus Christ and rest. That's a kind of soft joy set apart from any other.

Father, thank You for encouraging us in our sorrowful times. You created us, and You want us to share all with You. Not just the happy moments, but also the sad. In Jesus' holy name, I pray. Amen.

Until next time . . . rest in God and His Son.