Locked
and loaded, killer for hire, a foot soldier of the international crime
syndicate…
He
spies his prey. The thrill is no longer to kill, but for the bounty it brings.
His
right knee and boot laces touch the parched earth. In one slow, fluid motion he
leans forward as his left elbow and knee connect and the rifle steadies.
His
right hand wipes sweat from brow and then pulls the rifle tight to his
shoulder. His face plants against the stock.
The
rhino, stands before him, alone, strong, confident, unafraid, untamable…unaware
of the value others put on his demise.
The
hunter considers the majestic beast, wonders, but only for a moment, the waste
of downing such a wonderful creature simply for the horn.
He
lines up his sights, rests his finger on the trigger…
Always
the hunter—never the hunted.
He
pulls in a slow, steady breath and holds. His trigger finger—
BAM.
The
breath he held, becomes his last.
The
elephant didn’t need a second blow.
The
hunter suddenly becomes the hunted.
The
rhino, chewing a clump of grass sticking out both sides of his mouth, squints
toward the elephant, raises his head, points his horn toward the heavens, and
slowly, turns and ambles away.
The
elephant watches the rhino for a moment or two, looks at the lifeless body
below his feet, raises his trunk and with a long blast, trumpets loud and
strong.
Hours later, the only evidence for the park ranger, is what's
left by the lion—the skull and trousers.
When I read that story my mind drew lines and connected dots between what was being read…and perhaps what was really being said.
I read about the widespread poverty in the area, and wondered if he'd resorted to this as a last resort to feed his family.
I thought of how the poacher, driven by greed or desperation, left wife and daughters to mourn the loss of their father.
I read that the poachers drug the rhinos and then use a machete to hack away the horn, or use a chainsaw; leaving the rhinos to bleed to death.
I couldn’t help but think of the money purchasing the poachers. The evil behind the curtain, manipulating the market to create such a demand for something with virtually no value or human purpose.
A rhino horn is made of keratin, compressed hair. It provides no health benefits to humans.
Yet, folks who practice Eastern medicine have been conned into the belief that the horn has benefits as an aphrodisiac or a fever reducer or hangover cure; so, they grind it up in a drink or give it as gifts.
The demand has made it more valuable than cocaine.
I remember, behind the scenes money manipulating tycoon George Soros stated, “Trump will disappear in 2020, or even sooner.”
I thought of how, over and over, for multiple reasons, from both sides of the aisle, President Trump has been referred to as a rhino.
Rhino is found in
the King James Version margin to Isaiah 34:7 ("rhinocerots") for
re'emim; A wild animal, fierce and untamed…
The
unnerving passage speaks of the judgement of the nations.
Isaiah 34
Judgment Against the Nations
Come near, you nations, and listen;
pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the
world, and all that comes out of it! The LORD is angry with all nations; his
wrath is on all their armies. He will totally destroy them, he will give them
over to slaughter. Their slain will be thrown out, their dead bodies will
stink; the mountains will be soaked with their blood. All the stars in the
sky will be dissolved and the heavens rolled up like a scroll; all the starry
host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled figs from the
fig tree. My sword has drunk its fill in the heavens; see, it descends in
judgment on Edom, the people I have totally destroyed. The sword of the LORD
is bathed in blood, it is covered with fat— the blood of lambs and goats, fat
from the kidneys of rams. For the LORD has a sacrifice in Bozrah and a great
slaughter in the land of Edom. And the wild oxen (rhino) will fall with
them, the bull calves and the great bulls. Their land will be drenched with
blood, and the dust will be soaked with fat. For the LORD has a day of
vengeance, a year of retribution, to uphold Zion’s cause.
And
then, there’s the elephant that killed the poacher.
Of course, we all know the
elephant has represented the republican party for decades.
Did
you know the loud, long sound an elephant makes is called, Trumpet?
In the end, there’s the lion.
The
lion wasn’t seen, but left evidence of his consuming presence.
For since the creation of the world His
invisible attributes are clearly seen…(Romans 1:20)
The
Lion Of The Tribe Of Judah—Jesus Christ, the Messiah; King of Kings, Lord of Lords. The One who is about to come at the last trump, and return with
a sword.
“Weep not: behold, the Lion of the
tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed…” (Rev. 5:5)
“And from His mouth proceeds a sharp
sword with which to strike down the nations” (Rev. 19:15)
You
may say my imagination is taking the story where it doesn’t go.
You may be
right.
You may say, with all this evil, the world is falling apart.
I agree, to a degree...but in the end, what I really see is evidence of God's plan falling together.
What I hear is that the breath we hold...may be our last.
No comments:
Post a Comment