A Herd of Camels in the Back Garden

Now here’s a thing. I’ve been a Christian for nearly thirty years and I still wobble, worry and don’t lean enough on God for my every needs. In fact, worse than that, I rely on my own understanding, which on a good day is all right, but on less good days could be compared to a handbrake on a canoe, or indeed an ashtray on a motorbike. Useless, in other words. 

As you know, I took the leap and became a full-time writer on 1^st January this year. This coincided with my elderly parents needing a lot more care and support, something which ate into my writing time and pushed all my buttons. As writers, you’ll detect a whole other story behind those words, but it’s not one I’m telling today. 

I sat in my beautiful Palace of Creativity resenting every phone call, every email, every new task put upon me. I had (still have) a novel to write, freelance commissions to execute. I lay awake at night worrying. What if I couldn’t make it work? What if the words didn’t flow? What if it was all a gigantic mistake? 

Dear friends rallied round. I received a beautiful bouquet of flowers (and I do so love getting flowers), an orchid and a large box of assorted brownies. They made me feel so much better. I had suspected that the many obstacles being thrown in my path might be coming from the enemy and so it proved. Prayer, lots and lots of prayer, was prayed over this situation and from it came so many amazing things. 

One of the prayer warriors sent me a text I wasn’t familiar with. It’s Isaiah 60:1-6. One line leapt out at me and I was simultaneously comforted and inspired. “There’s my MTW blog for February!” I cried, and indeed, here it is. 

The Glory of Zion

60 “Arise, shine, for your light has come,
    and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
² See, darkness covers the earth
    and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
    and his glory appears over you.
³ Nations will come to your light,
    and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

⁴ “Lift up your eyes and look about you:
    All assemble and come to you;
your sons come from afar,
    and your daughters are carried on the hip.
⁵ Then you will look and be radiant,
    your heart will throb and swell with joy;
the wealth on the seas will be brought to you,
    to you the riches of the nations will come.
⁶ Herds of camels will cover your land.
And all from Sheba will come,
    bearing gold and incense
    and proclaiming the praise of the Lord. 

The bit that really struck me was the herds of camels covering my land. Picture the scene. A sleepy Mr and Mrs Leigh are wandering around the kitchen in the morning, making tea, rousing children, feeding the cat. They have often talked about success and what that might look like. Mr Leigh frequently avers that the BBC need to serialise Isabella immediately (a six-part series on BBC1 on Sundays) while Mrs Leigh fantasises about being rung up by Richard and Judy, or the Radio Two Book Club or someone like that and becoming an Actual Thing. 

Him: “Ruth, the back garden’s covered in camels.”

Me: “Aha! My heart is throbbing and swelling with joy! Some people from Sheba should be pulling on to the drive any minute bearing gold and incense.”

Him: “Should I make a pot, then?” 

I’m being silly. Glory in 2022 probably doesn’t involve herds of camels in Suffolk. And the scripture is not about getting fat contracts, endless royalties and becoming a household name. Drooping rather miserably over my laptop last week, however, the words seemed to shimmer and hang in the damp January air, promising something wonderful, something unknown. Me being me, I seized upon the bit about the camels which made me smile, but of course that’s not really what it’s about. 

I’m now in that interesting place we sometimes find ourselves where I’ve done what God suggested, am praying daily about it, being covered in protective prayer and waiting on Him. And of course I am full of radiant joy and all the worry has been chased away (OK, it hasn’t). It’s not a comfortable place to be in, but when was following Jesus ever about comfort. 

As you read this, then, maybe have a think about what your herds of camels might look like. I’m keeping a weather eye out for mine.

Images by Pixabay

Ruth is a novelist and freelance writer. She is married with three children, one husband, assorted poultry and a kitten. She is the author of “The Diary of Isabella M Smugge”, “The Trials of Isabella M Smugge” and is currently writing “The Continued Times of Isabella M Smugge”. She writes for a number of small businesses and charities, reviews books for Reading Between the Lines and blogs at ruthleighwrites.co.uk. Ruth has abnormally narrow sinuses and a morbid fear of raw tomatoes, but has decided not to let this get in the way of a meaningful life. You can find her on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and TikTok at @ruthleighwrites and at her website, www.ruthleighwrites.co.uk.