Indian Legend

A friend shared with me this story, and I want to share it with all of you, especially those feeling all alone and scared, or going through tough times.

This legend tells of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of Passage.

When a Cherokee Indian Youth reaches a certain age, his father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shines through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is considered a man!.

He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own. The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blows the grass and earth, and shakes his stump, but he has to sit stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he would become a man!

Finally, after a horrific night the sun appears and he removes his blindfold. It is then that he discovers his father sitting on the stump right next to him. He has been watching over his son the entire night, protecting him from harm. We, too, are never alone. Even when we don't know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.

Moral of the story:

Just because you can't see God, doesn't mean He is not there. 'For we walk by faith, not by sight.'