A mother deer and her fawn were feeding next to Long Island Sound. A walking trail wound around the edge of the large body of water, and tall grasses and forestland grew thickly on the other side of the trail.
The fawn had big brown eyes and long ears that twitched as it chewed leaves and grasses. Small white dots could be seen on its back.
Deer have keen senses of hearing and sight. As they eat, they are constantly lifting up their heads and looking around for the approach of enemies. Some animals have sharp teeth and claws to defend themselves, but not deer. They depend on their eyesight, hearing and speed to outrun anything chasing them.
The mother and fawn were munching on grass when something startled them. In an instant, the mother bounded off into the forest. Frightened, the fawn bounded off in the opposite direction. In a few short leaps, the fawn splashed into the water!
The instinct to run away was so strong that the small deer kept running deeper into the water. Soon its feet no longer touched the ground, and it began to swim. By moving its legs in a running motion in the water, it swam farther and farther out into the deep water. In minutes it was 100 yards away from the shore. The great effort of the long swim tired the little deer. It swam slower and began swimming in circles, like it didn’t know the direction it needed to go to return to the safety of the shore.
Just about then, a man and his two dogs came walking down the trail. One of his dogs was a collie and calmly walked at the man’s side. The other dog, named Storm, was a large retriever that loved the water. Storm was constantly running in and out of the water, swimming and splashing, and then running back to his master.
As Storm was running back and forth, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He stood still, staring out over the water. He had spotted the fawn’s head in the water, and watching the fawn, he sensed the little animal was in distress.
“What is it, boy?” his master asked. The man looked to see what had caught the attention of his dog, and then he spotted the fawn. Storm looked up at his master as if to ask, “Can I swim out there and bring it back to shore?”
After a moment, the man said, “Okay, Storm, go get it!”
That’s all the dog needed to hear! He ran into the water, and with strong strokes, he quickly covered the distance. The fawn made no attempt to avoid the dog. Storm swam right up to the fawn, opened his mouth, and firmly but gently clamped down with his teeth on the back of the fawn’s neck. The fawn went limp in the grasp of the dog’s mouth. Pushing the fawn in front of him, the dog turned and swam back to shore.
When they made it back to dry land, Storm dragged the fawn out of the water and onto the pebbly beach. Gently he dropped the fawn, which fell in a heap and lay as still as death. The gentle dog, nudged it with his muzzle as if to say, You can get up, little buddy. This went on for a few minutes before the fawn, wobbling, once again got up on its feet.
When the mother deer didn’t come back for her baby, Storm’s master made arrangements for it to be taken to a wildlife refuge. At the refuge, it will be cared for until it is about a year old when it will be released into the wild once more.
It was a good thing for the fawn that Storm came along when he did to rescue it. And what a good thing it is for us too, that when we were in trouble because of our sins, the Lord Jesus came to save us.
When God looked out over this world, his heart went out to all the people living in it. He saw each member of Adam’s race in trouble because of their sins. This trouble was far more than they could ever deal with on their own. It’s as if God saw each person in self-will headed away from Him and into a lost eternity.
He truly loved them. In love and compassion, He had to do something to bring sinners back. God opened His heart and gave the greatest gift He could possibly give. “God so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)).
Thankfully Storm didn’t have to give up his life to save the life of the fawn. But it was very different for the Lord Jesus. He had to die in order to rescue sinners. “Without shedding of blood is no remission” (Hebrews 9:2222And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. (Hebrews 9:22)). Willingly He went to the cross and suffered, bled and died. Because of His death, those who repent will have forgiveness. Isaiah 55:77Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. (Isaiah 55:7) reads, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” To be pardoned means to be forgiven and to have the dark stain of sin removed from your heart forever.
If you are headed away from God because of sin, you are headed away from the only One who has the power to help you. You are headed to a lost eternity. Won’t you stop before it’s forever too late, realize your danger, and look by faith to the Savior of sinners?
The Lord Jesus gave His life for you. Through faith in Christ you may have your sins forgiven and have your life turned around for God. He is able to help you in every way that is good and right on your way home to heaven.
Please don’t turn Him away. The fawn couldn’t avoid being hauled out of the water by Storm, but sinners in their self-will can say “no” to Christ and continue in their sins. If they go on in their sins, God will have no choice but to eventually punish them in hell. What a terrible mistake it is to put off coming to the Savior by faith! “Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near” (Isaiah 55:66Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near: (Isaiah 55:6)).
ML-03/11/2018