Have you ever tried to help someone or something that didn’t want your help? Maybe it was fear, mistrust, or simply an “I can do it myself” kind of attitude. This next story fits squarely into that category.

It was a summer day in the early 1970s, and our first-calf heifers were beginning to give birth. It’s always a tense time. Labor is an entirely new experience for these young animals. Some do so effortlessly, while others fight it every step of the way.

One particular animal fought it more than any I had ever witnessed. Dad and I kept a close eye on her to make sure she was progressing through the birth process. For whatever reason, labor had slowed and essentially stopped. She was nervous and paced the pen back and forth.

Finally, Dad made the command decision to help this poor girl deliver. If we didn’t, the risk of injury—or even death—to both cow and calf was a real possibility. She had tired and was lying down. Quietly, Dad slipped up behind her and tried to place the delivery chains (a tool specially designed for just such an occasion) on the calf’s front feet. She immediately jumped up and ran around the pen.

Dad and I backed away and let her settle down again. We tried once more, and again she jumped up and ran. Again and again we hid, then quietly approached from behind, and each time she bolted away. Things were getting desperate, and did I mention she loved to kick?

Finally, after an hour or so of this circus, she tired enough for Dad to attach the delivery chains. I slipped in behind her, and on the next contraction Dad and I pulled with all our might.

This time she jumped up, ran around the pen, and through the gate into the outside paddock.

Now, if that wasn’t enough of a problem, she didn’t stop there. She found another gear somewhere and headed for the corner of the lot. She didn’t even try to jump the fence—she simply ran through it. I must add at this point that my father’s Pennsylvania Dutch vocabulary became quite animated.

The next thing to happen was simply unbelievable.

As she crashed through the fence, the delivery chain—which was still attached to the partially birthed calf—caught on a fence post. The momentum of the cow and the immovable post converged. That poor calf was delivered in an instant.

The cow was stunned.

The calf was stunned.

Dad and I were stunned.

Mama cow stopped, turned around, saw her baby lying there, and immediately, like a good mother, went back to take care of it. For your information, no animals were harmed in the telling of this story. The calf was up and walking within minutes, and Mama quietly returned to her pen with baby in tow.

Dad and I laughed until we cried. Never had we witnessed such an event.

The fence was repaired. Mama and baby calmed down. As far as I know, she went on to become a productive member of the herd.

Now I want to turn the opening question around.

Have you ever refused a helping hand out of fear, mistrust, or an “I can do it myself” attitude?

This is not an accusation or condemnation. I am one of the world’s worst at accepting genuine kindness and help from others. It remains a constant struggle.

When I think of that poor cow, I see a little (maybe a lot) of myself. God comes quietly to help, but fear, pride, mistrust, or the need to do it myself sends me running in the opposite direction. Yet He never seems to give up. He patiently waits, follows along, and keeps working for my good even when I’m making a complete mess of things.

Looking back, I suspect there have been moments when God has simply smiled and said, “There has to be an easier way to get through to him.”

Thankfully, His grace is bigger than my stubbornness.

The great evangelist and miracle worker Apostle Paul always had someone with him. Even those moments when he was alone he longed for a helper to walk with him. He wrote in his second letter to the Corinthians:

 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, 4 who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.                        2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (ESV)

Dear friend, our lives take a team effort. Giving and receiving are parts of the journey. Don’t miss out on blessing others by allowing them to lend a hand, an ear, a heart. God will provide a way. 

You never know, a fence post may even get your attention.

Grace and peace,

Jarvis—From Soil To Soul