The Story of a White Stallion

By Pr Hammond

......So, I want to ask myself as well as ask you, how can we change? How can I respond and wait patiently for God's justice in my life, rather than muttering like the Pharisees did. How can I focus outside of myself rather than at the injustice that I perceived then perpetrated upon me? And, I believe maybe this final story may help us understand.

It's a tale that is told of a kingdom long ago. There was a poor farmer who had a prize white stallion. The king offered to buy this horse from the farmer and make him a very wealthy man. But after thinking about it, the farmer said, "I'm sorry. This white stallion is like a member of my family. I can't sell him."   

Some weeks later, as the farmer always did, he got up and went out to the stable in the morning and to his surprise, as he opened the door the door to the stable was open and the stable was empty. The prized white stallion had run away, escaped through the gate.

Now as the villagers came by they evaluated the situation and then said, "God has cursed you because you didn't sell that stallion. Now he's gone. You'll never see him again." The farmer said, "I don't know if it is a blessing or a curse. All I can say is that my horse is not in the stable."

Well, two or three weeks later when he came out, as he did early each morning to the stable, there was the white stallion. This time the white stallion had six wild horses that had returned. He closed the gate. And the villagers soon came by. They said, "God has blessed you! You stallion is back and you have six more horses. You are now a very wealthy man." To which the farmer said, "I can't say if it's a blessing or a curse. All I know is that my stallion is in the stable and there are six other horses with him."

Well, now to take advantage of the wealth he had received in these wild horses, he and his son set about breaking these horses so that they could be sold or kept or used. As they were breaking them an accident occurred. The son fell of the horse and broke his leg. At which time the villagers came around to give their assessment of things. "It was a curse that those wild horses came to you! Your son will not be able to help you bring your crops in from the field this year. You are going to be a pauper as a result of this." To which the farmer said, "I cannot say if it was a blessing or a curse. All I know is that my son fell off the horse and broke his leg."

Well, some time later, a king's herald arrived to the village. He told the villagers that a neighboring rival king had attacked their country, and that the king was taking all able-bodied young men to go and fight this terrible invader. The villagers began to weep. They all turned to the farmer and said, "Our sons will go off and die in war, but God has blessed you because your son's leg is broken. He cannot go off to war." To which the farmer replied, "I can't say if it's a blessing or a curse. Al I know is that my son can't go to war."

Now, why do I share this story with you? Well, often in our spiritual life we try to interpret every event that happens to us as a blessing or a curse from God. Is this good? Is this bad? What is it? And we end up being like the villagers, or the Pharisees, kind of mumbling in a very contradictory way about how God is working in our lives. But what God calls us to do is to listen patiently as the farmer did, to allow God to bring His will into our lives, the plan that God has prepared for us.