Once upon a time there was a young Indian boy who dreamed,
as most boys do, of being a man. When he became a man of the tribe he knew he
would have respect and honor and be offered opportunities to do great feats for
the benefit of his tribe.
The only thing standing in his way of becoming a man was the
“test of manhood.” During this
much-anticipated and feared test the young boy would be blindfolded, have his
hands bound and then be taken into the deep forest. There the youngster would
be left sitting on a stump with his eyes still covered and hands still tied. To
pass the test, he must sit through the night braving the unknown, the unseen
and perhaps dangerous beasts of the forest. If he survived the night he could
return to the tribal elders; they would then declare him a true man and true
brave.
Well, the time came for the young boy to be tested. His
father bound his eyes and hands and took him to his destiny. They went around
and around, through bushes, around trees, across streams. The boy didn’t know
where he was or even how far they’d come. Just before the father left him he
leaned over and whispered into the boy’s ear, “Son, be strong, be brave, and
don’t give in to your fear.” Then, he
was alone. The night sounds were terrifying. All night his imagination ran
wild. What terrible thing was creeping upon him? How could he survive the worst? Yet he sat in his fear like a stone. He had
never felt so alone, so abandoned. He heard the panther and bear nearby. He
could feel the eyes of the hungry wolves surrounding him. A number of times he
thought he must cry out. Becoming a man wasn’t that important! He could go back to being a boy. All he had
to do was tear the blindfold from his eyes and wiggle loose from his bindings.
He could do it. Then he’d be safe from all the surrounding dangers. But, he
thought of his family and their shame if he showed his cowardice. So, he stayed
all the way through the night.
When he felt the sun on his face in the morning he knew,
although he had been left and could have been so easily killed by all the
animals of the night, he’d made it. He had passed the test. He felt lucky,
fortunate to have survived, and a little proud of his own courage. It was time.
He took his blindfold off and looked around. There, just a few feet away, was
his father standing with bow ready and arrows at hand. His father looked at him
and said, “I’m proud of you son, you are a brave man.” The boy became angry and cried out, “Didn’t
you think I could make it on my own?
Didn’t you believe in me?” The
father smiled and exclaimed, “You I trusted, but I love you and I was not going
to leave you defenseless before all these dangers. You were brave. But I was
here all night keeping guard.”
This story illustrates that even when it seems we’ve been left
all alone out in the darkness of the trials of life, our loving Father is
standing nearby on guard for our safety. Even though He loves us, He wants us to go through the dark
experience of seemingly being all alone and seemingly being unable to move. He
allows our imaginations to run into paralyzing, disheartening fear. Sometimes
the encouraging word He gives us is only at the beginning of our trial. He
whispers in our ears, “Be strong, be courageous, and do not despair!” [“The
Whisper” is taken as an excerpt from the book, Unemployed: Life in the
Wilderness by Len M. Allen]
1 Chronicles
28:20
Then David said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and courageous, and
act; do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord
God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you nor forsake you until all the
work for the service of the house of the Lord
is finished.
Joshua 1:7
“Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according
to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the
right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go.”
Philippians
4:11–13
… I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know
how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in
any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and
going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things
through Him who strengthens me.
Think about it….
