As my husband was out of town, I decided to mow the lawn. Up and down the rows of grass I went, mowing and thanking God for the day and the health to work. As I ducked under a low-hanging branch of our plum tree to avoid entanglement, I saw movement on the ground to my right. Upon further inspection, I recognized a little toad – no more than an inch-and-a-half long. He no doubt hopped as a response to the vibration of the ground because of my mower. When I reached the end of that particular row of grass and turned the mower, I thought, “I have to keep my eyes peeled for that little toad which will now be to my left.”
I began cutting the new row – toward the plum tree again. And sure enough, the toad was hopping in the grass to the left of me. Then he stopped. Maybe he froze in fear; I don’t know. But what I do know is how I instinctively responded to the situation. Without a second thought, I stopped cutting, bent over, and pushed the toad out of the way of the mower’s deadly blade. I think I even said aloud, “Hey, little buddy, get out of the way and be safe.” Imagine! I talked to the tiny amphibian and pushed him to safety!
I realize not everyone may have done such a thing, and I certainly pass no judgment on that. Toads come and toads go in this world, and they are not generally pets. However, as a side note, I would like to point out the basic principle of God’s Word regarding animals that “belong” to us, “The godly care for their animals, but the wicked are always cruel” (Proverbs 12:10, NLT).
Now, back to my toad/lawnmower encounter … This incident stopped me in my tracks in more ways than one. As soon as I pushed the toad aside to save it from a cruel death by lawnmower blade, I stopped my mower a second time beside that plum tree and thought to myself, “Shelli, you will pause and make the effort to reach down to a tiny amphibian to save it from death, but how many times do you refuse to reach out to unsaved people who are right in your path and present the Gospel to them – their escape from the danger of eternal death?”
I was horrified at the thought of my negligence of caring for the eternal souls of people when compared to my compassion for the earthly life of an animal. God used this situation to grip me – to shock me back to the reality of the unseen realm. He sharply reminded me of the spiritual world in which exist eternal souls – and an eternal Hell. A lawnmower blade is nothing compared to isolation from God forever and the misery of eternal guilt without hope of relief. Even Jesus cautioned His disciples, “And do not fear those [the devil, people] who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him [God] who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28, ESV).
God, please help me. Help me to take seriously the eternal souls of my fellow human beings. Assist me in reaching out to people and saying (in effect), “Hey, buddy, Jesus is the way to safety from sin and Hell! Let me help you go His direction.”
Remember Romans 10:13-15 (ESV) when you think of the toad and the lawnmower. I am sure my little amphibian friend liked the look of my feet in the grass that sunny morning!
- “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!”