By Pastor Mark Moreno

God’s Will

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

One of my guilty pleasures when I am on social media is to get sucked into videos of animals being adopted by a family or videos where two animals that should not get along or hang out with each other, are playing and cuddling. Maybe it is because of the old Disney movie “Fox and the Hound”.

Today’s image gives such a depiction: a lion, a tiger and a bear (oh my)! Each of the unique creatures are powerful in their own right and unless you visit a zoo or a circus, you’d never see all three in one spot on the planet. This gathering of animals are highly unlikely.

Maybe that is the appeal: When we see something unfold that is unlikely, it can strike us as funny, inspiring or even comforting. The Bible is filled with stories that have unlikely twists and turns, and some of them even involve animals. Once such story is found in Numbers 22:26-28:

“Then the angel of the Lord went ahead and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left. When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam. And Balaam’s anger was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?””
English Standard Version

Can you imagine an animal speaking to you? It would absolutely stun me and I don’t know if I could even process it. I have to hand it to Balaam: He handled it way better than I would. Yet God used the unlikely in this text to bring about His will.

In your life, there may be many unlikely parts to your story. I challenge you to ponder those things and see what falls in the category of funny, or of inspiring and perhaps even comforting. In my life, I had a challenging childhood where I moved many times and lived under scant conditions. But, in an unlikely twist, God used that childhood to prepare and shape me for the life He prepared for me! That is so very comforting.

You shouldn’t expect your dog to speak to you anytime soon, but you should strive to see God working in the unlikely. My prayer for you is that God would surround you with loving and caring people and that you would find comfort in a local church community where Jesus Christ is proclaimed as Lord and Savior!

Copyright Family of Christ Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado