Rider on the Red Horse
I remember the day before cancer entered our home and rearranged everything in our lives. On the eve of Holy Week, I went for a run. I am NOT a runner. It was Saturday morning and I was heading to the gym to workout but the idea of "going for a run outside” popped into my mind and seemed like a good idea made even better by the fact that I could take my dog Ben. Now Ben is a twelve year old black lab and is not exactly in running shape per se but loves the Oak Leaf Trail and any chance to jump into the Root River that winds along side of it. We left our driveway walking downhill and out of our little neighborhood.
Running north on the trail I spotted a curious figure on the horizon. An old man on a red tricycle, the sort of large tricycle I remember senior citizens riding in the 1990's. As he rode closer I could see his long red and grey beard hooked into the shape of a "j" at his waist in the west wind. It was almost cartoonish yet mythical like an animated scene from Lord of the Rings. I reached for the phone in my right pocked but resisted the urge to take a picture of him realizing it would be rude. As we passed I could've swore I heard him say "Caleb" but that couldn't be and then Ben distracted me and pulled me down a well worn deer trail to the river where I let him swim.
Leaving the river we climbed back onto the trail and headed south home. Once again, on the horizon was the old man on the red trike, this time coming from the opposite direction! As our paths began to cross we both slowed to a stop in sync and he said, "Pastor Caleb, I have an eye witness account for you ... " My mind raced for a reason he might know my name and what an "eyewitness account" was. I wondered if this might be related to something that happened in our city where I serve as a chaplain to first responders. I replied, "Sure, what is it?" The man, whose eyes were so kind and voice so gentle said, "God's grace is sufficient for your every circumstance". He then looked down at my lab and said "Ah, this must be your old friend who's had so many adventures in his long life, Ben". My mouth was wide open. I reached out my hand and asked him his name and he said, "Steven" . Steven, which happens to be my middle name and the name I passed on to my son Ano. As he pedaled away I stood still overcome with emotion. Ben and I walked slowly home.
Later that day, my wife walked through the front door, stopped on the stairs looked up at me and said, "We need to take Ano to the ER". She told me his hip was hurting him so much that he had to brace himself against a shelf halfway down the aisle at the dollar store. It was that pain that led to an X-Ray and the word "mass", and a biopsy that would translate "mass" into the dreaded "C" word.
Three months later, I stop and look back and realize that so far I’ve been carried along. During the most difficult twists and dramatic drops I have experienced a miraculous calm like standing in the eye of a storm. As we all wait for a miracle, I have found that “God’s grace IS sufficient in every circumstance" just like Steven said it would be.
Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! - Hebrews 13:2 NLT
