God, Grandkids and Sophie the Deer.

Reading to 3 of the 5 grandkids before a sleepover with Nana and Papa. And Cooper the professional photobomber.

Living up in the woods near Mt Hood has its perks. We can wander the trails to our hearts content and enjoy the beauty of God's creation with every step we take. Wild life is all around. We also have danger, as we all have seen in the  recent Portland news of the cougar that killed a woman across the highway from us. 

Nobody ever said it's safe up here. 

Well, except me. I say it all the time when I try to convince friends or family to come stay for a while.

We don't have as many deer up here as we used to 20 years ago. But they will still visit occasionally, stepping quietly into the yard from the dark woods to eat the grass in the yard. 

Last spring, Rod was walking the trail when he noticed a doe a few yards away, seemingly frozen in a crouched position. It took him a few moments to realize she was giving birth to a fawn. He moved on leaving her to her work, hoping that they would both survive and thrive.

Another day on the trail....a quieter day.

We saw her every great once in a while, and usually she would leave her fawn in the relative safety of the trees when she stepped into the yard. We named the doe Sophie.

One day a couple weeks ago, three of the grandkids were up visiting. We had told them about Sophie and 

 the kids wanted to walk through the woods to the creek looking for her. I knew it wasn't likely that we would see her, with three young rambunctious kids, two goofy dogs. And one goofy Rod. He can be pretty loud,too.

But we would have a nice hike to the creek and tire these crazy kids out.

So, off we went.

It was no big surprise when we walked all the way to the creek and didn't see Sophie. When we arrived at the bridge, Max asked if we could pray that we would see her on the way home. 

Well, I GUESS so. If you REALLY have to... 

Just kidding!Of course we can. I won't say no when the kids want to pray. (And if I ever do, just punch me in the throat. I'll deserve it.)

So we all knelt down on the forest floor and asked God to let us see Sophie on the way home. We said we knew he was in charge of all the deer in the woods, and he could let us see her if he wanted to. Amen.

When we were finished , the kids and Rod raced across the bridge and began playing around the hollow tree they alway hide in.

Suddenly, I heard Rod shout. He had been stung by a bee. I moment later Gracie got stung and started screaming her lungs out. Rod is allergic and Gracie was hysterical (I'm not gonna lie; so was Rod.) so we started running back along the trail. With all our racket there was no chance we were going to see any wildlife, let alone a skittish doe. And with all the panic we had forgotten our request.

But God didn't.

I had picked up Gracie and began hurrying back down the trail towards the house. Suddenly I began to get stung by bees. I put Gracie down and began pulling at my clothes trying to get those darn bees off me. Gracie was screaming even louder,poor baby. Lilli was crying, scared she was going to get stung, and Max was racing through the trees toward home.

Suddenly I realized Rod had stopped directly in front of me and was pointing. There Sophie stood, just a few yards off the trail, as if she were posing for a portrait.

Gracie stopped screaming, Lilli and Max stood staring. The dogs were right next to us and never saw her.

She stood watching us and Gracie asked if we could go pet her; she was so close. No, I whispered. But look what God did.

Sophie stood still watching us and we stared back in wonder before she turned her head and leaped effortlessly through the thick trees.
I just marveled.

It wasn't just seeing a deer in the woods like it is an everyday occurance.

Do you see what God did?

We couldn't say, "Oh, we were quiet and stealthy as ninjas, sneaking through the forest searching for the doe."

No. Pretty much the opposite.

We were a loud and unruly mob of adults, kids and dogs, screaming like they were being killed, rushing madly through the woods, making as much noise as possible, snapping sticks with our feet and whipping branches out of our way as we ran to the house for safety.

That's when God had his doe, Sophie step close to the trail just so we could see her.

This is just how our God loves to work. Answering specific prayers for his children. Showing up when it seems the most unlikely. (this totally makes me think of 1st Kings 18:20-40 , when God had Elijah pour water on the wood until it was flooded, making sure everyone knew it could only be God)

Showing how much he loves them by responding. Listening. Hearing as we pray. The little things like asking to see a doe become big things, like learning that God loves you and hears you and answers your prayers.
It is building a foundation for my Max, Lilli and Gracie's lives.
A rock solid belief that the God who made the mountains, the woods and all the deer on the Earth loves them dearly (do you see what I did there?) and hears them.

The day is coming, if it hasn't already, when my grandchildren will pray to God and it might seem as if he doesn't hear them and they will not see his quick response the way they yearn to.
But I hope and pray that they will remember this day and know that God loves them tremendously, listens intently to them and is always, always working.Romans 8:28.

Below is a video from this week of Sophie and her 7 month old fawn Half-Pint. Enjoy!