Thank You, God, for Everything—Especially Horses

By Linda Amick Algire

Horses are one of Gods most fascinating creatures, and quite a few people have a disease called horse fever. Dont worry; it isnt fatalbut there isnt a cure.

We love horses because they are beautiful, but do you know they are also wonderful teachers? Thank You, God, for EverythingEspecially Horses explores the lessons horses teach about trust, respect, being appropriate, patience, forgiveness, living in the moment, making good choices, and so much more. It is a dual journey of horsemanship and faith. The insights into horse behavior are fascinating for horse lovers, and the personal experiences shared by the author will fill your hearts and minds with a desire to treasure relationships with horses, friends, family, and, most importantly, God.

There are wonderful parallels between what horses teach humans and what God wants us to learn. Perhaps this gracious creaturethe horseis a gift to help us truly understand what God wants to share. Thank you, God, for this glorious, gracious creature, the horse.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Aug 27, 2015
• ISBN: 9781512708882

Linda Amick Algire

Linda Amick Algire finds horse behavior fascinating. She grew up loving horses in Crestline, Ohio, and fondly remembers riding at her grandparents’ farm with her pony, King, and her horse, Flicka. Linda currently lives in York, South Carolina, with her husband, daughter, four horses, six cats, and one dog. Horses continue to teach important lessons about life, and Linda nourishes her faith through worship and bible study. Linda is qualified to teach natural horsemanship and loves to share this knowledge and passion through her writing. Visit Linda at www.fawnsongfarm.com.

Book preview

Copyright © 2015 Linda Amick Algire.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by Biblica, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Used by permission. NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION® and NIV® are registered trademarks of Biblica, Inc. Use of either trademark for the offering of goods or services requires the prior written consent of Biblica US, Inc.

Cover image by Michael J. Hauck

Print License from The Lorenz Corporation to include song lyrics to They’ll Know We Are Christians by Peter Scholtes

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

1 [phone]

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-5127-0889-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-0890-5 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-0888-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015913439

WestBow Press rev. date: 08/27/2015

Contents

Chapter One Be Thankful

Chapter Two Please Lead Me

Chapter Three Good Intentions

Chapter Four Be Appropriate

Chapter Four Glorious Gifts

Chapter Four Life’s Lessons

Chapter Seven Let Go of the Ego

Chapter Eight Precious Trust

Chapter Nine Because It Feels Right

Chapter Ten Our Love

Chapter Eleven Choice Is a Gift

Chapter Twelve Rescue Me

Chapter Thirteen Old King

Chapter Fourteen Deanna and Linda’s Great Adventure

Chapter Fifteen My Melody

Chapter Sixteen The Journey Continues

Comments from Friends

Linda’s natural ability to read horses and the tips she shares can help owners form new, meaningful partnerships with their horses. But, you don’t have to own a horse to enjoy this book. The heartfelt stories she shares along with her faith and love of God are inspiring. Feel your joy increase as Linda helps you see ways to be thankful— not just for horses, but our families, friends, and, most importantly, our amazing God!

Cindy L. Shasky

Come along and bring your horse (real or imaginary) on a thought-provoking walk of faith with Linda Amick Algire. Linda is a horsewoman of great faith. She has written a wonderful devotional through the lens of horses as teachers. Linda discovered through her work with horses that she was as much in training under their tutelage as they were under hers. While her lessons were about accepting a halter, a saddle, a harness, their lessons centered around trust, forgiveness, living in the moment, and more. Linda has come to understand that horses are a gift from God; one of His many teachers in our journey to become closer to Him.

Deanna Just

Thank You, God, for Everything…Especially Horses

What do horses teach us about trust, faith, and our relationships with family, friends, and, most importantly, God?

By Linda Amick Algire

Dedication

This book is dedicated in memory of King, Flicka, Doc, and Melody living forever in my heart and to the four glorious equines currently bringing joy to my life: Fawny, Clyde, Pumpkin Pie, and Rendition. Thank you for touching my soul. To my husband, Doug, thank you for believing in me when I didn’t believe in myself. To God, I give all the glory. Thank you, God, for everything… especially horses.

I prayed for my pony to grow and she did…

she grew braver, smarter, and embedded herself deep within my soul.

Then much too soon she was gone.

I prayed for a pony to help heal my heart and he did…

he is brave, sweet, smart, and his spirit brings joy and a future.

Linda Amick Algire

Preface

How does having a great relationship with a horse help you to have a better relationship with family, friends, and, most importantly, a better relationship with God? My experiences have taught me that having a relationship with a horse that is based on trust and respect is very similar to the relationship God desires with us, His children. Perhaps this gracious creature, the horse, is a gift to help us truly understand what God wants to share.

Everything I have written is from my heart; from my love for horses and from my love for God. I know with certainty that there are wonderful parallels between what horses teach humans and what God wants us to learn. I know that God has given me a gift to understand horses, and also the gift to share His love through my writing. For both of these gifts I am thankful.

Let us take this journey together; a dual journey of horsemanship and faith as we learn what it means to have a relationship with horses, and how they bring us a little closer to walking a life with Christ. My prayer for each of you is that these thoughts will fill your heart and mind with truth, knowledge, and a desire to bring your best into relationships with your horse, family, friends, and our Savior. Thank you, God, for this glorious, gracious creature: the horse.

Linda Amick Algire

York, South Carolina

2015

Introduction

Horses are one of God’s most fascinating creatures, and quite a few people have a disease called horse fever. Don’t worry; it isn’t fatal but there is no cure. We love horses because they are beautiful, but do you know they are also wonderful teachers? Thank You, God, for Everything…Especially Horses explores the lessons horses teach about trust, respect, being appropriate, patience, forgiveness, living in the moment, making good choices, and so much more. It is a dual journey of horsemanship and faith. The insights into horse behavior are fascinating for horse lovers, and the personal experiences shared by the author will fill your hearts and minds with a desire to treasure relationships with horses, friends, family and, most importantly, God. Thank you, God, for this glorious, gracious creature: the horse.

1

Be Thankful

And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.

Colossians 3:15−17, ESV

26992.png

Horses are truly one of God’s best creations. I am constantly in awe of what horses think and feel. Of course, I may be slightly influenced by this thing called horse fever. Perhaps you have horse fever, too. Please know: it isn’t fatal, but there is no cure.

Horse fever means we love everything about horses. We love the way they smell, the way they look, the care they need, the horse stuff to buy, and how we somehow manage to live with less so they can always have the very best.

Do you realize that there are actually people who have no desire to touch a horse? I know it’s hard to believe, but when we touch a horse we touch one of God’s best creations. When I touch horses, I thank God for the richness they bring into my life and the lessons they teach. Yes, even when it seems like I am hauling hay and manure more often than I find myself on a leisurely ride, I am thankful.

30619.png

When we touch a horse we touch one of God’s best creations.

30617.png

Thankfulness always leads to joy, so perhaps horse fever is thankfulness and joy packaged in a bundle. When we are thankful for horses and manure, we learn to be thankful for everything, however small. It is all God’s handiwork and all so wonderful.

Being thankful for everything God has provided is a great way to get an incurable case of God fever. Is it possible that God gave us horse fever because horses are such wonderful teachers? I think so.

You may wonder why I am thankful for manure. I am thankful to have the strength and good health to accomplish the daily task of cleaning the barn and loading the manure into the front loader of the tractor. It is a big and often very dirty job, but I am thankful there is always manure to haul. For those of you who are not familiar with impaction colic, please know that when a horse is not making manure it can be a very bad and often lethal condition. I am thankful we have manure that needs to be picked up every day. See how easy it is to be thankful for even the most unappealing job?

Sometimes we find it difficult to be thankful because we simply don’t understand. I certainly didn’t understand why we needed to buy a tractor for our small farm, but my husband, Doug, insisted, and now we have a hard working New Holland TC33 tractor – affectionately known as Bluebell. Thank you, God, for Bluebell − but wait, I am getting ahead of myself. First, I need to tell Bluebell’s story.

We call our little farm Fawn Song Farm, and it is our first horses-at-home property. The day after we closed on the farm, we impatiently waited for the arrival of the moving van loaded with all our worldly possessions. We had driven to South Carolina with the truck, horse trailer, the horses, and all their paraphernalia. But, unless we were willing to move into the barn, we needed the moving van to arrive with our things soon. And so we waited.

As we waited for the moving van, I saw a truck driving very slowly down our road. Interestingly, it was a truck pulling a flatbed trailer with a brand-new blue tractor perched on top. The truck made a slow turn onto our gravel drive, and I turned to look at Doug, who looked exactly like a little boy getting ready to open a big present on Christmas morning. Doug had been in the area for several months prior to our move, and apparently, he had time to go tractor shopping. While I was very aware he wanted a tractor, we hadn’t made a decision to actually purchase a tractor. Or, so I thought. I couldn’t understand why we needed a tractor for a 6.33- acre property, but standing in the gravel driveway of our new home and looking at my barn and watching my horses in their new pasture, it felt very wrong to be angry. Oh my, it is very hard to be angry when you are grateful, and I was very thankful for my new farm.

Now, please don’t picture me with a halo − yet. At every opportunity, I was ready