The year was 1956 and I spent the summer on my uncle Anton's farm in South Dakota. My cousin, Lloyd, hitched the horses to the wagon early one morning and we headed to the hay fields. The horses must have sensed, probably from past experience, the hard day that was in front of them because, no matter how hard Lloyd tried to drive them, they only had one pace; SLOW. We probably only drove two or three miles but it seemed to take forever.
Once we arrived, he hitched the horses to the hay rake. The team sluggishly dragged the rake over several acres gathering the freshly mowed hay and we pitched it into huge haystacks. It was a long, hot, summer day and the work was hard for all of us, especially the horses. By the end of the day we were all weary but our work was done and we were going home. We hitched the horses to the wagon, loaded our gear, and headed for the barn. But the return trip was different.
Lloyd didn’t have to drive them home. Instead, he wrapped the reins tightly around his
powerful hands and stood with both feet firmly braced against the wagon’s bulkhead. With all his massive weight and strength he struggled to maintain some control over the powerful force of those horses thundering down the road at breakneck speeds. But as hard as he pulled, he could not slow them down. We all hung on tightly as the wagon jumped and bounced over the rutted dirt road. It was a short but thrilling ride. Those horses always knew when they were going home. They knew the way and they were anxious to get there.
Once we arrived, he hitched the horses to the hay rake. The team sluggishly dragged the rake over several acres gathering the freshly mowed hay and we pitched it into huge haystacks. It was a long, hot, summer day and the work was hard for all of us, especially the horses. By the end of the day we were all weary but our work was done and we were going home. We hitched the horses to the wagon, loaded our gear, and headed for the barn. But the return trip was different.
Lloyd didn’t have to drive them home. Instead, he wrapped the reins tightly around his
powerful hands and stood with both feet firmly braced against the wagon’s bulkhead. With all his massive weight and strength he struggled to maintain some control over the powerful force of those horses thundering down the road at breakneck speeds. But as hard as he pulled, he could not slow them down. We all hung on tightly as the wagon jumped and bounced over the rutted dirt road. It was a short but thrilling ride. Those horses always knew when they were going home. They knew the way and they were anxious to get there.
Life is often tough; the labor is hard and sometimes the difficulty seems unbearable. But, as Christians, we labor and suffer more joyously knowing that our way lies toward heaven. We are on the trip home and anxiously anticipating our final rest in our Father's house.
“Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.” Matt. 5:12
“Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.” Matt. 5:12
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