Unless the Lord Watches Over Us

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Psalm 127:1 

Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)

¹ Unless … the Lord watches over a city, the watchman stays alert in vain.

 

Sixty years ago, Solusi was in the veldt some six mile from the nearest neighbor. Wild animals used to wander onto campus frequently. Russell lived across the concourse from me. The soil was light and sandy and with a little irrigation grew magnificent vegetables. He had a wonderful garden, and the wild critters soon discovered it. So, he fenced it in. This kept the smaller animals out, but the kudus had no trouble jumping the fence and eating his cabbages and corn.

Not to be outdone, Russell put up a 14-foot-high fence with a high tensile steel wire at the top to discourage the kudu. When the produce had grown to a delicious size, Russell came out one morning to pick food for the table. Much of it was eaten, and the spoor was clearly that of kudu. The kudu is a magnificent antelope, one of the world’s greatest. The male sports beautiful spiral horns often six feet long. With all of its mass and horns, the kudu had easily jumped his high fence, feed unmolested, and jumped out again, all in the dark of night.

Russell now declared war. He got a good-sized gun, opened his window, and sat in the darkened room watching the garden. Well into the middle of the night he watched—in vain. Finally, he decided the kudus weren’t coming that night, so he packed up and went to bed. The next morning more crops were gone, and fresh kudu spoor told the tale.

 “So, they like to come in the early morning! I’ll get them tonight,” he decided. He went to bed early and got up around midnight. Lo and behold, the kudus had already come and gone before he got up. He never did outwit these massive raiders. Even so we wrestle daily against our enemy, who hates us.

Thank You, Lord, for being willing to watch over us and protect us—because no matter how vigilant we are, the enemy is far cleverer than we can ever be.

 

[1] https://photos.google.com/photo/AF1QipOUXFrh_1zMzMMleXPbpwh2OKYXANtR8Ek1oa2Y