Chapter 7 Summary

In Chapter 7, The Great Shepherd leads Much-Afraid and her companions to the shores of Loneliness and tells Much-Afraid that she must continue the journey without Him but that He is only a call away. Much-Afraid and her companions, Sorrow and Suffering, walk along the great sea for many days and she does not let go of their hands. Much-Afraid was amazed at the difference she could feel in herself since leaving the furnace of Egypt, and knew that she would never be the same girl she was in the Valley of Humiliation. Although she felt deep loneliness after the Great Shepherd left, she eventually began to feel Joy at the smallest things around her on the shore. During a time of rest one day, Much-Afraid wandered off and found an empty cove, then later returned to see the cove filled to the brim with the high tide. This inspired her to build her third altar, declaring to the Lord that she is empty like the cove was, but is waiting for His timing to be “filled to the brim with the flood-tide of Love” (p. 41).

When Much-Afraid’s family learned that she was not yet in the mountains but was seen wandering on the shores of Loneliness, they quickly sent out Pride, Resentment, Bitterness and Self-Pity to find Much-Afraid and bring her back. When they found her, they could not get close to her because she was holding onto the hands of Sorrow and Suffering, so instead they took turns mocking her and yelling at her. Then one day while her companions were sleeping, Much-Afraid wandered off alone. It wasn’t long before all four of her enemies closed in on her, but as Pride tried to seize her she called out to the Great Shepherd for help. He arrived instantly and picked Pride up and threw him off the cliff, while the other three ran away to hide.

Much-Afraid asked the Shepherd why she was almost in Pride’s grasp today again, and why the other three were able to pester her for so long. The Great Shepherd explained that when the path became easier she started to think that it was almost time to go to the mountain instead of continuing to accept with joy where he leads her, and that impatience will always allow the enemies to get close to her. Much-Afraid knew that what He spoke was true and admitted that she was starting to think he forgot his promise, but told the Great Shepherd that it is her joy to follow him. Then the Great Shepherd picked up a stone from beside her feet and told her to put it with her other stones to remind her of the sight of Pride falling before her and her promise to wait patiently for the Great Shepherd to fulfill his promise.

Chapter 7 Thoughts:

In Chapter 7, the loneliness Much-Afraid experiences causes her to grasp onto the hands of Sorrow and Suffering and not let go. She does this for several days before she begins to experience joy in her heart in the most unexpected of circumstances. I think it is important to point out that once again, it is the guidance of Sorrow and Suffering that allows her to connect with what the Great Shepherd has for her, and in this case, that is joy in all the small things around her.

Her enemies could not get near her while she held onto Sorrow and Suffering. Isn’t it interesting that we often think our experiences of sorrow and suffering ARE the enemy, yet they are often the experiences that protect us from the enemy and keep us from wandering away from God.

“They could never get within close reach. because she kept so close to Sorrow and Suffering and accepted their assistance so much more willingly than before.” (p. 42)

This is emphasized when her enemies were able to get close when she wandered away from Sorrow and Suffering. If you are like me, you may have been confused at why Much-Afraid would have gone anywhere without her companions while she knew her enemies had been following them. It says that she “…unwarily wandered off alone” (p.43) and it’s important that we focus on that word “unwarily” which means to be careless about risks or dangers. This was confusing to read this turn in the story because it happened so quickly. She was doing so well holding onto the hands of her companions and resisting the enemy, and then all of a sudden she walks off by herself and finds herself surrounded by enemies. What went wrong?

The Great Shepherd explained that it was the impatience of Much-Afraid that opened the door for her enemies. Another word for her impatience would be doubt. Much-Afraid started to doubt that the Great Shepherd knew best. It is easy to keep the faith when we see the fruit of what God is doing, but when there is nothing right in front of our eyes to encourage us to stay the course and we forget what he has called us to do, doubt creeps in. The good news is, God knows that we go astray like sheep and he does not hold this against us when we call for his help and repent. He comes running (or leaping) and the enemy flees.

Have you ever experienced joy in the midst of sorrow or suffering that you knew was from God?

How would you describe the difference between that type of joy and the joy that you’ve experienced without trouble or sorrow?

Much-Afraid still has several lessons to learn on her journey to the High Places and I look forward to continuing this journey with you.

-Nadine

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