I'd rather be like the swan besotted with the tractor than be nibbled to death by a duck

“Being nibbled to death by a duck.” I don’t remember where I read this, but it is an image from some Bible study that has stuck in my mind over the years.

Have you ever been in a relationship or a situation where someone has picked at you—quietly, persistently undermining everything you did? I have and I’m sorry to say, I haven’t behaved well. Constant taunting erodes even the toughest wall of defense when it is primarily focused on resisting, in this case, the temptation to fire off a verbal volley.

Achieving victory over anything, whether unfair treatment or addiction, requires more than a defensive grit-your-teeth-and-hold on battle plan. Victory comes with a new mindset, a new vision imprinted in the very core of your being.

 A great example of this comes from the book of Nehemiah. The Jews who were rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem were being “nibbled to death by a duck.” The enemies in their midst taunted, mocked, threatened, jabbed, and stabbed until the people of Judah were worn down, fearful and disheartened.

Nehemiah admonished them to not be afraid. Easy to say, but how to do? Nehemiah tells them to remember the Lord, great and mighty, to imprint Him on their minds.

Recently I saw a news clip about a swan who “loves” a blue tractor. The swan walks alongside the tractor, stands by it when it stops, and runs after it when it goes too fast. This has been going on for years. No one knows just what the fascination is, but they speculate something about the tractor was imprinted on the swan early in life.

Ah, besotted.That’s what I want.To have the Lord imprinted in fiber of my being so that I will rest in the security of knowing the One who is great and mighty.