“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” Colossians 3:3
I heard the pack of dogs long before I saw them. Howling viciously, barking as if they were on the trail of big prey. They raced past me the first time—beasts that had long since lost any form of domestication. Their eyes were glowing with intent, teeth bared and snapping, saliva dripping down their muzzles as they imagined tearing into the feast of their prey. I trembled at such a terrifying sight, and breathed a sigh of relief as they passed. But then terror gripped me once more as their cries, which had been growing fainter, began to grow louder as the pack circled around to my direction again. A dawning realization sent shivers of fear and anxiety down my spine—I was the prey, they were after me.
The savage snarling grew even louder until the sounds became almost deafening—suddenly, they were standing close enough to me that I could see their crazed eyes and their fangs dripping with lusty drool. Everywhere around me there were snapping jaws of greed, lust, envy, covetousness, seeking my flesh to bite into, to consume, to maim my life in a way that would steal all joy and satisfaction. I could feel a breeze stirring around me as their jaws anxiously snapped the air. They were so close—how is it that they couldn’t see me, find my flesh with their teeth?
All of a sudden, I became aware of the soft presence of feathers around me, and I looked around to see I was in a nest woven of the strongest and finest materials the earth had to offer. The nest was hidden deep in the forest, and the materials were strong enough to repel the pack’s teeth and strength. When my eyes were opened to see this, I felt myself relax, and fall back into my hidden place, into the comfort of the feathers. I was not alone, my sense of self was safe here in its home, protected by the Creator.
The pack grew weary of its empty pursuit, and eventually set off again, looking for other, easier prey. And I sank into the abundant silence that spoke everything I needed to know.