Turtle

Today is a holiday and Cheryl and I have been working outside. She ran the weedeater and I pushed the mower along the fences. I really don’t like to mow grass—duh! Who does? It is not so bad when all our equipment is working properly, but our riding lawnmower is waiting to be repaired, so I have to use the push mower while it is out of commission.

I was praying and pushing this morning, and I stopped instantly when I saw a turtle stuck in the fence. Some people call this type of wire “range fencing” or some people call it “hog wire.” It has small rectangular panels and the rather large turtle was lodged in one of the rectangular panels that was even with the ground. The turtle was dead. It had apparently been trying with all its might to move forward, but it was impossible because its body was wider than the clearing in the wire. Interestingly enough, if the turtle had just walked backwards it might have saved itself.

As I continued to push the mower I thought about that dead turtle. If he had only stopped trying to push itself through the fence and used a small amount of energy to go backwards, it might have backed out of the fence and lived another day.

I decided that I am a lot like that turtle. My ability to move fast and bring a task to completion is sometimes an asset. I totally get the part about moving forward and not looking back. Once I make up my mind to buy something, I am not one of those persons who search around to see if he gets the best buy. I research, I make a decision, I buy and never compare again.

I know all the scriptures about moving forward and not dwelling on the past (Isaiah 43:18-19, Philippians 3:12-14, 2 Corinthians 5:17, and others). But my inclination to move forward fast can be a liability. This is what the turtle taught me: I tend to move so fast that I don’t take time to think about the process. Like the turtle I am working so hard to move forward that I don’t even think about the predicament, much less about taking a step backward. I get caught up in the moving forward so much that I do so at all costs. Thank you, Lord, for reminding me to remember the situation, remember the process, and remember not to move forward too fast.