McKenna Says God Lives Here

For a period of time my grand-daughter and her siblings lived at the Ranch with Randy and I, and we have always had a very close relationship.  She loves to come and visit us.  She has a special feeling about being here, as do so many people.  Recently a female veteran who lived at the ranch along with her daughter made the following comment, "We shall see you soon ...We enjoyed being at the ranch, I felt like nothing could hurt me there."  That is a common line of thought by all who visit, but our grand-daughter expressed it best...

As Randy always says, it is a place to "stand down."  I am not sure why, but it has always been a place of God's favor.  My little grand-daughter McKenna said it best when she arrived for a visit.  She said, "Nana, do you know why I love coming to the ranch so much?" I told her no, and asked her why she loved it.  She said, "Because God lives here."  She will be going to second grade this year I believe.

Psalms 91

¹ The one who lives under the protection of the Most High
dwells in the shadow of the Almighty.

² I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”

³ He Himself will deliver you from the hunter’s net,
from the destructive plague.
⁴ He will cover you with His feathers;
you will take refuge under His wings.
His faithfulness will be a protective shield.
⁵ You will not fear the terror of the night,
the arrow that flies by day,
⁶ the plague that stalks in darkness,
or the pestilence that ravages at noon.
⁷ Though a thousand fall at your side
and ten thousand at your right hand,
the pestilence will not reach you.
⁸ You will only see it with your eyes
and witness the punishment of the wicked.

⁹ Because you have made the Lord—my refuge,
the Most High—your dwelling place,
¹⁰ no harm will come to you;
no plague will come near your tent.
¹¹ For He will give His angels orders concerning you,
to protect you in all your ways.
¹² They will support you with their hands
so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will trample the young lion and the serpent.

¹⁴ Because he is lovingly devoted to Me,
I will deliver him;
I will protect him because he knows My name.
¹⁵ When he calls out to Me, I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble.
I will rescue him and give him honor.
¹⁶ I will satisfy him with a long life
and show him My salvation.

WHEN YOU ALMOST LOSE A FRIEND, YOU SUDDENLY KNOW EXACTLY HOW MUCH THEY MEAN TO YOU

You may have heard on the news that South Texas has had a little rain.  That is putting it mildly.  We received over nine inches overnight at my house, and this has caused some problems, and if it had not been for my best friend, Brenda Orr, it would have caused a tragedy.

I had a long night, because Ginger, our dog, is terrified of lightning and thunder, and we had significant lightning and thunder.  She whined and insisted that my arm be over the edge of the bed touching her all night long.  I slept in a bit, and then around nine o'clock my girlfriend called talking about how the water was rising in town, and threatening some homes.

I had not thought of flooding possibilities as I comforted Ginger through the night, but after Brenda's call I went to the door to check things.  When I opened the door, I panicked!  As I looked across the property, water was everywhere, and deep.  Then I noticed the pen that I keep Rocket, our little miniature goat in had at least two feet of water in it from one end to the other, and I could not see Rocket.  

I ran barefoot in my nightgown down to the pen, and as I approached I thought I saw her floating at the deepest end.  Panic and soul pain flooded me.  Rocket has been a sweet and loving companion, and I adore her.  I struggled with the chain on the pen, and finally got it open, and as I waded toward the end of the pen she made a pitiful little bleat from her house.  She was in the house up to herchin in the water.

She was shivering uncontrollably, and could not move to come to me.  I went into the structure and carried her out and back to the porch.  Then I took her to the bathroom and warmed her as I blew her dry with the hair dryer.  She was so grateful, and so was I that Brenda had called the water kept rising, and within fifteen minutes or so, it was above the roof line of her little house. 


She would not have survived another
 ten minutes, and I would have lost a 
dear little friend.  It came to me once 
again what careful care the Lord 
takes of me, and then how he makes 
a way to demonstrate to me it was by 
His hand that the grace came.  I would have been devastated.  Rocket spent the rest of the day dry on the porch, eating my potted plants.

This incident reminded me of the story in the Bible of Moses, and the release from captivity of the Jewish nation from the Egyptians.  When Moses went to the Pharaoh,  he would not at first listen, then he would relent.  In fact this happened several times as God would through various plagues demonstrate to the Pharaoh His resolve to have his people set free.  One would wonder why at each demonstration of God's power, the Pharaoh would at first refuse, then relent, and then change his mind again.  That would be a good time to note the little phrase "but God hardened the Pharaoh's heart," each time, and he would relent.  You might wonder why God would harden the Pharaoh's heart, cause him to change his mind, and why God in His Word would make note of that.

All of our structures here at the ranch have carefully been constructed above the flood plane.  I rode a back-hoe for  hours moving dirt and building a pad for their foundations.

We also have very good flood insurance, we have made provision for catastrophe, but I had not considered the possibility of the tragedy that almost happened.  If God had not prompted Brenda's heart, I would have lost a dear friend, and been very grieved.  God wanted the people of Israel to know that it was not the generosity or kindness of the Pharaoh that was the reason for their release, but His Almighty Hand.  I know yesterday morning I was certain of the fact when I heard Rocket call to me from her little house.