He make my feet like the feet of the deer; He enables me to stand on the heights. Psalm 18:33
The feet of a deer are agile, swift, seemingly delicate, whether curled up under their warm body or running through a meadow, or walking and leaping through the crags – feet that are made for movement as well as rest.
Such as it is with our feet. We can stroll, stride, climb, dash or sit with them under us while we engage in a good book or in a good conversation.
But what happens when feet are rendered lame or injured? Or when standing, let alone walking, becomes a dreaded job? I’m not quite sure how to answer that because I have those lame feet.
David writes that it is God and God alone who gives him feet to stand on the heights. He starts this Psalm by stating His love for God – His STRENGTH. It is God who gives him strength because God alone IS that strength; therefore, David can stand on the heights. And, to stand on the heights, one has to be able to climb there. One has to have the agile, hind’s feet to climb, to scoot around rocky crags, to ditch pitfalls, to have endurance to reach the top. All of it is needed to get to the top. Yes, God is his strength. He is our strength.
Sometimes climbing requires scrambling. Which is cumbersome because of uneven ground, detours, sliding, bushes, fallen tree limbs, distractions as well as danger. Obstacles at every turn and are a given when one is scrambling up a mountain. But, to deer, this is inconsequential. Have you ever seen a deer contemplate his way up a mountain? Ever? I haven’t. They just go. Eyes ahead on the prize – which would be the top of the mountain, the heights. Or, the other side of a luscious green meadow.
In a sense, they walk by faith. They have confidence in their ability to get there, and their feet are fitted for the task. They were made to climb the heights. So, they just go for it. To quote Nike.
Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm. Do not swerve to the right or left; keep your foot from evil. Proverbs 4:25-27
In keeping our eyes fixed ahead, we keep our goal in mind. The heights where Jesus is. Or even the valley where the growth and Jesus are. By walking on those level paths, we are choosing to follow God who has gone on before – He has blazed the trail before us. Even in our scrambling up the mountain, God has gone before so He has made a way for us. Our footing will be firm because God has made it so. If we keep our eyes on the path marked out for us, we will not swerve right or left. We will put one foot in front of the other. In our lane or in our rut, on and on up the mountain. And before you know it, our feet have become hind’s feet. We’ve climbed a mountain that we thought was unscalable for us. Whether too high or too craggy.
I have been so concerned with wanting the ability to actually scale a mountain, God is desiring that I actually scale His mountain – and that mountain is so much different. It’s where Moses met Him as He passed by. It’s where Elijah felt the wind, earthquake, fire then heard the wind – the very breath of heaven. Because that’s what whisper means: the Spirit of God.
Our mountains may be an actual one – like Mt. Whitney, or Mt. Diablo. And, climbing those is exhilarating. But, I am coming to find out that the mountains in our lives that God is most concerned about cannot be seen. They have to do with our heart. Either way, He gives us the feet of a deer to climb them, He gives us the ability to stand there on the heights.
Funny thing about that word stand. It means ENDURE. Endure the climb. Endure the hardships. Endure the scramble. And, endure the height. It truly is God alone Who is our STRENGTH. He gives us everything we need. He truly does. Enjoy this song that reminds me of this truth. LISTEN.
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