He Walks With Me!

by
Dr. Dwight Garrett

There is an old beloved hymn that, as a child, I remember singing in church and lately it has been running through my mind and having an impact on my life. The song is called: “In The Garden”, and it goes like this;

I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear falling on my ear
The Son of God discloses.

(Chorus)
And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

He speaks, and the sound of His voice,
Is so sweet the birds hush their singing,
And the melody that He gave to me
Within my heart is ringing.

(Chorus)
And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

I’d stay in the garden with Him
Though the night around me be falling,
But He bids me go; through the voice of woe
His voice to me is calling.

(Chorus)
And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

As I think of this wonderful old hymn from the days of my youth, I am also reminded of a story my daddy used to tell about a little girl, and her dog.  Here is that cherished and precious story – a reminder of what our own daily walks of life with Christ can mean to us;

Once, in a very affluent and upscale, middle class neighborhood, there lived a prominent and wealthy successful business man who was always busy with his hurried lifestyle, and who was so consumed with making a financial mountain of wealth that he had no time for his personal life, his family, not to mention he had no time for God. Always on the go, always thinking of one thing---making money and becoming more and more wealthy with each passing day.  Wealth and fortune is something this man had plenty of time for, and he devoted his life to it.

His demeanor was bitter, mean spirited and very self serving. He was so busy being wrapped up in his corporate world of wealth and fortune that his wife and children suffered the pain of emptiness and longing for his love and attention.

He provided much wealth for his family though, and through his fortunes, his family had all the material things money could buy, huge house, the largest and most expensive vehicles with every available option imaginable, the finest china to eat from, plush imported carpeting, and rare and fancy furniture imported from the ends of the earth adorned every room of their home, etc., but the one thing they did not have was true love and happiness, and God was not anywhere to be found in their lives or in their home.

One day a family of little wealth and means moved into a house in a neighboring neighborhood that wasn’t quite as upscale as the one this man and his family lived in. In this family lived a small girl who had a dog who she loved sorely. It wasn’t long till the little girl began taking her dog on daily morning walks through the upscale neighborhood. 

She loved gazing at all the large mansion type houses with lush green manicured lawns that were adorned with statuettes and fountains.  Her daily walks with her dog took her directly past the house of the wealthy business man.

Every morning before hurrying off to his busy world of financial prosperity he would see this little girl passing by his house. He watched the little girl intently because he surely did not want her dog to step on his prized yard. Sometimes the little girl would see him watching her, and she would smile and wave---but the man never smiled or waved back. 

He knew she came from what he called “the poor side of town” and he cringed at her modest plain appearance with clothing bought from a second-hand shop, and it was obvious to him that she certainly did not fit into the lifestyle of the neighborhood she strolled through with her brown, medium sized mixed breed dog.

Attached to her dog was a red frayed leash. Sometimes the little girl would kneel down and unsnap the leash and let her dog run and romp freely around as she laughed and played with him.

The little girl and her dog seemed so happy and carefree, and the man noticed how happy they appeared as they played as walked along. But irregardless of how happy they seemed, the man absolutely did not want her dog to set one foot on his property, and he was bound and determined not to let it happen, so he waited and he watched.

The man noticed as well, that no matter how much the dog romped and roamed---he never strayed too far from the little girl’s side. And every time a vehicle would pass by, the dog would always run to the little girl and stand between her and the street in a protective and guarding manner.

Then One day it happened. The little girl’s dog inadvertently strayed onto the man’s property. It wasn’t long till the man took notice of this and he hurried outside and in a tyrant’s rage, began screaming and yelling obscenities at the little girl for allowing her dog to stray onto his property. He threatened harm to the dog if she ever allowed him onto his property and she immediately called her dog to her side and profusely apologized to the man and vowed it would never happen again.

Still enraged, and late for a dinner arrangement with a client who would bring even more wealth to his bank account, the man hurried off to his car and his parting words of warning to the little girl were, “Just make sure you keep your half-breed mutt and yourself off my property”.

For several more weeks, the little girl and her dog continued their morning walks, and each day she would still smile and wave as she walked her dog past the man’s house – all the while keeping her puppy attached to his leash making sure her puppy wouldn’t stray onto the property.

Then suddenly, several days had gone by and the man didn’t see the little girl and her dog, and he began to wonder where they might be as he was still concerned the dog might stray onto his property again.

He was afraid off the things he could not see, and it bothered him that the little girl and her dog might wander onto his property undetected.  But he had a plan, just in case, and if it happened, he made a secret vow to himself that he would harm the little girl’s dog.

Then one day, as the man gazed out of his window, watching for the little girl and her dog, he spied something very peculiar. The little girl was walking alone. She still held the old frayed red leash in her hand---but her dog was nowhere to be seen. Immediately the man assumed the dog surely must be somewhere on his property. So, again, he rushed outside in a huff and was prepared to scold the little girl once more.

As the man approached the little girl, she turned to him, smiled and said, “Good morning sir, how are you today?”

Not in any mood for small talk, the man grumbled back, “Where’s that awful looking mutt of yours---is he somewhere on my property again?”

The little girl paused for a moment, put her head down, gazed at the leash she held in her hands and replied, “No sir, my puppy isn’t on your property. See, I was crossing a busy street a few days ago and a car I didn’t see was coming right towards me, and my puppy ran out in front of it and leaped on me and managed to push me out of harms way---but you see sir, my puppy didn’t make it, and now he is in heaven with Jesus.”

Not understanding, the man inquired, “Well then, if your dog is dead, why is it you are still carrying his leash with you?”

The little girl turned toward home and began to walk away, then she stopped, turned back toward the man, smiled and said, “You see sir, my puppy may not be here for you or me to see, but just like Jesus does, my puppy still walks with me, and protects me-----and he always will.”

The little girl’s words, and perseverance in the face of such a tragic and heartbreaking moment touched the man’s heart, and with tears in his eyes, the man turned and walked slowly to his car thinking of the strength that little girl had that after such a tragedy, she would continue her daily routine, and how she continued to smile and greet folks with friendliness and kindness.

As the man was on his way to his upscale, high class corporate world, he passed by a local church, and on the marquee sign in front of the church, he noticed there was an announcement for the up coming sermon which simply read----“He Walks With Me”, and under the words was this scripture reference: Matthew 28:20 “…..lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

Upon reading this church sign, he stopped his car and his mind raced back to the little girl who just lost her puppy and yet still had strength, perseverance, and a smile on her little face, and in an instant all of the man’s wealth, fame and fortune, and world of success seemed unimportant and he wept. 

Without hesitation, he turned his car and his life around and went home to spend time with and reunite with his family---and to begin learning about, reuniting and spending time with God.

And He walks with me, and He talks with me,
And He tells me I am His own;
And the joy we share as we tarry there,
None other has ever known.

Friends, are you too busy with the things of this world?

Does success and prosperity consume you, and is your life filled with stress, hostility and anxiety like the man in this story?

Is life passing you by, and are you missing out on all the benefits of love, peace and true happiness…like God and family?

Do you know Jesus?

Do you know the security that you are afforded with Christ by your side every hour of everyday even though you can’t physically see Him?

Are you walking in faith and holding onto hope---or are you just walking?

You can know true peace, love, happiness and eternal security if you turn your heart and life over to the Saviour Who loves you and will never leave you.

Ask Jesus into your heart today and you too will have peace, joy, happiness and security in your own life---and by asking Jesus into your heart and life today, you too can turn to the world, smile and proclaim:

“He Walks With Me!”

God Bless!