Finding Our First Love Again

I don’t think I could ever forget the first time I rode a horse. It is possible I had ridden prior, but my brain was finally developed enough to remember this ride. I was one of the many young girls who turned horse crazy, and this was the start of it. Not only do I not forget that ride, but I don’t forget that horse. Her name was Breeze. She was chestnut in color and her age showed by the flecks of white scattered across her head. I don’t remember all the details, but I remember being up so high and feeling each clip clop of the hooves underneath me. It was magical or at least felt that way. I was hooked.

Many years later, I was reminded again of the “magic” of horses with my nieces. Seeing my horses from a distance, one of my nieces shouted, “Horses! Horses! Oh cool!” She then proceeded to help me make sure the horses were well fed and told me she was “a big helper.”

When I think about these moments of excitement, it makes me saddened to know I have lost some of that. I often get caught up in the busy day to day that I forget the beauty around me. The munching sounds of horses after I pour grain into their feed buckets. The glossy shine of their hair after a bath and brush. The beauty and power they possess as they run across an open field. When my focus is on what needs accomplished instead of what is currently happening, I miss the beauty of horses.

I believe this can also happen with us as Christians. When we let the worry, stress, busyness, and goals of life distract us, we are missing out on God who is present in every aspect of our day. He is longing for us to see his beauty, strength, and majesty. Unfortunately, we get wrapped up in what we think matters while missing out on our relationship with him.

I came to know Christ as my Savior at a very young age. I don’t remember all the details, but I did journal at that time. Reading back and seeing young Becky’s heart for God is inspiring but also saddening because I have allowed so much to get in the way of that. I hold on to things that hurt me when I should let go of them. I continue in my own ideas instead of God’s ways. My thoughts become about me instead of about him.

“But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.” Revelation 2:4

How do we change this mindset? We must fall back in love again with our first love. By that I mean, we must love God. How do we do that you may ask?

First, by accepting Jesus not only as our Savior but also our Lord. He wishes to reign in our lives. Very few of us like the idea of being told what to do, but when we understand that everything God does, will do, and asks us to do is for our good, it becomes much easier to submit to him. He is not an abusive leader. He is a loving Father wishing to raise his children. By making Jesus our Lord, we give him our fears, goals, dreams, and desires. Now these things may not be bad in and of themselves, but if they are something that controls our thought lives and the way we live, they have become idols. We cannot worship these things with our thoughts and time and worship God. That is a house divided, and it will fall.

Second, part of changing this mindset is to fall in love with God’s word. By spending time in God’s word, we get to know God for who he is. The Bible is a book all about God. It tells us about his character, justice, peace, grace, and more. All of these can be known by reading his word.

Thirdly, loving God requires spending time in prayer. Be honest with God about your struggles. Admit your sin. Pray for power to change. Ask him to expose parts of you that need to change. Praise him for who he is and what he has done. Thank him for the things he is doing and continues to do in your life. He wants to spend time with you.

Fourth, remember, “It’s not all about you.” I had a friend tell me that once in jest, but it stuck with me. We live in a world that promotes being about ourselves. When we look at the life of Jesus, he lived quite the opposite life. He was about serving, helping, and giving everything to others. That is how we are designed to live. We are to live to serve others.

I have a close friend who has always demonstrated to me a dedication to her first love, her Lord and Savior. She once told me she had never missed a time with God since she was in grade school. When I received a text from her that her father had passed suddenly, I called her immediately in a panic. After I struggled with words of comfort, she responded, “God is in control and what he has is best.” She comforted me in her despair, but she only had the power to do so because she knew who God was.

Our first love is calling us to him and wishes for us to get to know him better. In return for our acceptance of him as our Savior and Lord, he offers us himself.

“If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.” Colossians 3:1-4

Becky Benedict

An upstate New York transplant, Becky now resides in Waynesboro, PA where she works full- time as a veterinary nurse and part-time as a horse-riding instructor. She has always had a great love for animals with horses being at the forefront. She is a Miracle Mountain Ranch alumnus. At that ranch, she learned to turn her love for horses into a tool to share the gospel. The horse and trainer relationship parallels many truths about our relationship with God that we see in scripture. Horses are great tools to demonstrate trust, obedience, and the majesty of God. Becky shares these things in her own teaching at B Squared Horsemanship. She has spoken at churches and events with her horses. Her favorite things are reading good books, sitting in coffee shops, hiking with her dog, and riding horses.