My Encouter with a Wild Boar

While in Hong Kong over Christmas, I had the opportunity to spend a couple of days in a luxury hotel in Cyberport, located on the southern tip of Hong Kong island. The area is considerably less populated than the rest of the city and my hotel overlooked the ocean. It was the perfect spot for a calm and relaxing personal retreat on the final days of 2019 -- or so I thought.

On the afternoon of my second day, I decided to go for a jog by the ocean. I left the hotel, walked up the road and turned off at the paved path leading down to the sea. I heard some rustling on my left, coming from the overgrown brush along the path, but because I knew the path also leads to a dog park, I didn't stop to investigate. Eager to get to the sea and begin my run, I hurried on, but seconds later, a large, brown animal comes out of the brush and we are almost face-to-face. At that moment, I realized the two people I had thought were waiting for their dogs along the same path were actually park employees, carrying large backpacks and suspicious-looking poles. One of them cautioned me to be careful, but I truly didn't need any warning -- I was terrified and immediately slowed my pace, hoping to avoid any unwanted attention. At that point, I noticed there was a closed gate at the end of the path and within seconds, I made my way safely to the other side of the gate  A group of children were gathered there, peering excitedly over the closed fence at the wild animals. I later learned that the boars had been spotted and lured by food in an attempt to capture and relocate them elsewhere, and that they are generally not dangerous, unless provoked or in protection of their young. 

I had come on this retreat with my Bible and my journal, hoping to seek God for the upcoming year. I didn't even know Hong Kong had wild boars and in all the years my parents have lived in the city, they have never even seen one from afar, so my experience was somewhat out of the ordinary. Only hours before, I had been on that same path with my little 3.5 year old niece and I am truly thankful that she had gone home with grandma by the time I met the boar and that I was alone. 

Once my heart and pulse rates slowed down to normal, I gave up the idea of jogging, and found a vacant park bench by the ocean instead. That's when I realized -- sometimes on the path to finding the Lord and learning to hear His voice, we come face-to-face with adversity, with our worst fears, with seemingly insurmountable challenges. These often appear out of nowhere, taking us by surprise, and it is easy to become discouraged and give up altogether. However, the Lord has given us tools in which to fight even the most frightening battles, and people to fight alongside us. In addition, He has promises that He will never leave or forsake us (Deuteronomy 31:6, Joshua 1:5), and that is a promise worth remembering. The key is to stay on the path, rooted in the Lord and focused on our goals, because with God, there is always hope.

If you are entering 2020 with a heavy heart, here is a song that reminds us to bring our burdens to the Lord, because He desires to turn our mourning into dancing and our sorrow into joy.

May your 2020 be filled with much peace and joy!