From Darkness to Light

“But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9)

Horses are my life passion. I held other jobs after high school but in my heart, I really wanted to work with horses. Shortly after an internship which helped me to become an instructor and trainer, I rented a small farm which enabled me to teach riding lessons, board, train and breed horses. I had acquired a few lesson horses, a Quarter Horse stud colt and there were still a few stalls left to board horses. In my eyes, at the age of twenty-three I was successful, yet this was only the beginning of my journey.

One of the boarders, Terry, owned a thoroughbred mare. Terry had accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior a few short months before she brought her horse to the farm. She was full of joy and enthusiasm for Christ and tried to share her faith with those she encountered at the farm. Terry was a little intimidated to share her faith with me since I was her instructor and I was not very approachable. Instead, she struck up many conversations with my mother, who would share those conversations with me once I return home from the barn. I had believed that God existed and yet did not know Him or understand what Jesus done for me on the cross. The eyes of my understanding were yet to be enlightened.

Terry belonged to a large church that held an Easter Pageant every year. The church put on an elaborate play that shared the life, death and resurrection of Christ and for the finale a scene where Jesus comes back riding a white horse. This last scene was the reminder of the prophecy from Revelation of Christ’s second coming. It was an important part of the play; at the time I had no understanding of the scene’s significance.

It was that lack of understanding and knowledge that brought my pride to a new level after Terry had asked me if I would be interested in bringing one of my lesson horses, Shada, to church to fill the role of the white horse in the play. Shada was a grey quarter horse mare  that looked white. My prideful heart leapt at the opportunity, not only did God choose my horse to be a part of this production but there was a paycheck behind it as well. The production was to run 3 days; Good Friday, Saturday and then again on Easter Sunday.  The Thursday before the opening of the show would be a scheduled practice day.

We hooked up the horse trailer, loaded Shada and took her to the church on Thursday evening to do a run through. She had never been inside a church before nor a cast member in a play. Thursday evening practice went well. The director of the play had me dress like an angel to lead Shada down the aisle and the man who played the part of Jesus who was dressed in white sat astride her bareback. The cast was excited and did whatever was necessary for the horse to be comfortable. Shada cooperated, accepting her surroundings as well as her role.

Good Friday came and so did the rain. Keeping a white horse clean now became a challenge. Once Shada was cleaned up we loaded her on the trailer for her debut on opening night. The church was full. I was told that there were approximately one thousand people there to see the Passion of the Christ. I stayed with Shada at the trailer until it was time for us to go on.

 Once I received the cue from Terry we entered the foyer of the church. We met the actor who played Jesus, and he was given a leg up to sit on Shada’s back. The large double doors to the sanctuary opened and several bright spot lights shined on us as I led Shada down the aisle. The people rose to their feet clapping in jubilant celebration. It was one thing that was not accounted for in practice, a standing ovation!

 Proverb 16:18 states “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.” So, it was. Shada spooked from the noise of the crowd and pushed into me, sending me somersaulting over three pews toward the front of the church. Shada stopped at the altar. I was on my knees with the lead rope in my hand looking up at the man who played Jesus. Horrified, my attention went to making sure the rider was ok. I rose to my feet quietly and exited out the side door with the horse and rider. Once safely in the foyer the rider was able to dismount, I hurried out of the church.  My typical response to getting knocked over by a horse would have been a plethora of curse words along with a reprimand. I was embarrassed and speechless. I quickly prepared Shada for the trip back home.

Humbled and humiliated by the experience, I was hesitant to return for the Saturday evening show. Embarrassed and afraid to make the call, I had my mom call the church and tell them we were not coming back. The director of the play pleaded with me to return stating that we could practice again or anything else that might help. Feeling guilty about leaving them hanging, I agreed to come early on Saturday to better acclimate Shada to crowd noise.

 I had my mom travel with me to help with the horse. Upon arrival we met with some of the cast who welcomed us. We took Shada inside the church. The cast gathered around us and began to pray. I could feel electricity all around me. I knew God was in that place! Then we practiced going up and down the aisle several times with the cast cheering and clapping. Shada seemed fine. Saturday’s show went off without a hitch. On the drive home I mentioned to my mom about the electricity I felt when the cast members prayed. My mom shrugged it off telling me I was just excited. I knew it was much more. Looking forward, we only had one more show. Once more day of keeping Shada out of the mud, one more day of trailering, one last time we would be appearing at this church or so I thought.

When I arrived on Sunday Terry offered to watch the horse so I could watch the play. Someone would come get me when it was time for Shada to go on. I had agreed as I was curious to see what the play was truly about. Sitting in the audience had given me a new perspective. The story about Jesus’s life, death and resurrection became real. Flashbacks of being a child sitting in church looking at the sculptures of the Stations of the Cross and wondering what it meant, were brought to life. Understanding, at least in part. It was time to walk down the aisle with Shada for the last time that weekend. Once again, the horse was peaceful, and this time so was I. After the play was over, I shared my experience with Terry and the other cast members. They encouraged me to pray and accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. {Romans 10:9-10} " If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead , you will be saved." At that moment I did not fully grasp what I had prayed or how my life was about to change. My spiritual eyes, which were clouded had been opened. God had gotten my attention and was drawing me near and revealing Himself to me in such a marvelous way, with a horse by my side. Attending the play with Shada was a divine appointment. One of many….

{Ephesians 1:18} “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints”