Told Through the Eyes of a Horse

When I turned two, Diana put a birthday hat on me. I was so excited to be turning two, I proudly wore that hat. Diana said, “Smile,” so I did.

She showed me my handsome birthday picture in her camera, and I saw that my body had grown into that of a great warrior horse. I excitedly looked to Jesus and with all my heart, I shared with God that my birthday wish was to become a great warrior horse, and I prayed that He also thought it was a good idea. But in my heart, I already knew that He, too, saw me as one. I looked forward to the day that Diana would see me as her matured Jesus horse, and I prayed that I would then earn beaded eagle feathers attached to my mane. I thanked Jesus Christ our Lord and God for helping Diana in raising and training me through their knowledge of love.

As our ground training exercise finally ended, it was time to start riding in the arena. How excited Diana and I were when she first placed her foot into the stirrup of the saddle, swung her leg over my back, and settled down comfortably in the saddle. How natural it felt for both of us, as if it weren’t our first time riding together. Diana calls the arena God’s big dance floor.

Over time, our skills in riding improved, and we were excited in the new life we had discovered. We matured not only as horse and rider, but also in Christ. We enjoyed each new day with an adventurous outlook, looking forward to the day that we could show off to the world just what God can do in and through an ordinary cowgirl and her ordinary horse.

Out of the blue, Diana came in contact with someone she knew who was a real cowboy. She hadn’t seen Steve in years. She asked him if he would come to the property and ride me to give his opinion on my overall training and to see if I had a sound mind. In his dark blue jeans, cowboy boots, and hat, he rode me with mature hands, like someone with many years of experience in a saddle. He maneuvered me gracefully in the lead changes at a walk, trot, and canter.

From the expression on her face, I knew Diana was in awe of how wonderfully I obeyed the cowboy’s commands. I heard her say to Steve that she wished she could ride me with such experienced hands. I wanted to tell her that I loved the way she rides me—and that I loved her just the way she was.

When Steve had finished putting me through the test, he rode me over to Diana, took off his hat, slightly bowed his head, and said, “Sterling will take you anywhere you want to go.”

Diana said, “Thank You, Jesus, and thank you, Steve, for coming out to the property and riding Sterling. Rene, I’m so glad that you were here with me today.” She thanked God for their friendship and hugged her with a happiness that touched my heart.

I’m so thankful of God for my cowgirl, and I wanted to tell the cowboy. But all I could do was give him a neigh and a head toss to thank him for his gentle hands on the reins.

Diana told Steve that I was raised through Christ and that God gets all the glory. He was not a believer in Christ, but he nodded and seemed to take to heart what she had said. He dismounted me and gave Diana the reins. They talked while walking me back to my corral, where Diana took off my saddle and bridle, and quickly groomed me. They were planning something that they both agreed on, something that would benefit our riding skills and trail adventures. Then, with a kiss to my muzzle, Diana said she was leaving and would be back later. I took advantage of this time and went into my stall to take a nap.

When I heard the truck pull up, I walked out to the middle of the corral and waited to see if she was going to come and visit me. With Jessie by her side, she walked into my corral. She held a whole apple up to her mouth. As she bit off a bite, instead of eating it herself, she gave me the bite. Then I ate the whole yummy apple myself. She prayed for God to bless my food, and I ate my alfalfa while she did her usual cleaning of my stall, humming until the end. Then she said, “Good night, Sterling. See you in the morning.”

After my tummy was full, from my heart and along with Jesus, I prayed to God that one day Diana would see me as her great warrior horse and attach beaded eagle feathers to my mane, which stand for courage. But God, as You well know, Diana gets in the way of my greatness because of her silliness. She loves putting hats on me and then taking pictures. To make things even sillier, she buys us matching hats to wear. Can You please talk to her about this? I thanked God for listening to my prayer, and I then settled down for the night.