“Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” — Proverbs 3:5–6 NLT
Recently, sitting at my office desk looking out my window I noticed something that should not have been there.
Cows.
Several of them were standing in our freshly harvested field, happily eating what had been left behind. My husband and I aren’t farmers, but we allow a local farmer to graze his cattle on our farm. Somehow, several of his cows had gotten underneath the fence and made their way into the field. Apparently, what was on the other side looked pretty good.
I felt sorry for the farmer. My husband went out to help him wrangle the cattle and get them back where they belonged. Later, he said something that made me laugh. “There is always a stubborn cow in the herd.” Isn’t that the truth? But as I thought about those cows, I started thinking about how easy it is for us to look at what’s on the other side of a boundary and wonder if we’re missing something.
There was a time in my own life when a door of opportunity opened and I desperately wanted to walk through. I imagined what my life could look like if I stepped in that direction. There was only one thing standing between me and my once in a lifetime opportunity; I couldn’t take my two young children with me. I knew I couldn’t make that choice, so I didn’t walk through the door. But truthfully, I grieved that missed opportunity for a while. At the time, I thought all my dreams might have come true if I had gone in that direction.
While I saw sunshine, beautiful flowers, and luscious green grass on the other side of the door, God could see the whole picture. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.”
Sometimes opportunities and choices can look so right to us. We can pray for a certain door to open, a relationship to work out, a job to come through or a plan to fall into place. And when it doesn’t happen, we may wonder why God didn’t give us what we thought we wanted.
I’ve lived long enough now to look back and thank God for some of the doors He didn’t allow me to walk through. His plans were better than mine. God’s boundaries aren’t there to keep us from living a full life. They are there because He loves us and sees what we cannot see. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.” Notice that a lamp doesn’t necessarily light up the entire road, it gives us enough light to take the next step.
Those wandering cattle also reminded me of another day on our farm. A calf had gotten loose and was crying. We were outside, but nowhere near that part of the property. Then the mama cow came to the fence line and began mooing loudly. She got our attention. She knew her calf was on the wrong side of the fence, and she wasn’t going to quietly stand there and watch.
I haven’t forgotten that. We wander too. Sometimes we knowingly step outside the boundaries God has given us. Other times we simply become distracted by something that looks better on the other side. But God doesn’t lose sight of us.
Jesus said, “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27 NLT) What a comfort to know that when we wander, our Shepherd still calls us back.
Maybe you’re standing in front of an open door right now. Maybe you’re disappointed because a door has closed. Or perhaps you’re looking across a fence and wondering why God seems to be keeping you from something you really want.
Trust Him.
I couldn’t see all those years ago where God was leading me. I only knew I couldn’t walk through a door that required leaving my children behind. Today, I can see His faithfulness so much more clearly.
We don’t have to see the whole field. We don’t have to know what’s around the next corner or understand every boundary God places in our lives. We simply need to stay close enough to hear His voice and trust that He sees what we cannot.
Sometimes what looks like a fence may actually be God’s protection. And sometimes a closed door is simply His loving way of leading us toward something better.