A young duck lived on a peaceful lake hidden in the middle of a forest at the foot of a great mountain range. There were many ducks living on the lake. Fish and other wildlife lived there, too. They loved their lake. They were very grateful for such a wonderful home.
One beautiful morning, the young duck swam happily towards the shore. It was a morning like every other morning except today he heard a strange duck sound from the woods. He didn’t recognize the voice. It sounded similar to a duck, but something was strange about it. The duck was curious. He walked onto the shore and quacked back. The strange duck noise answered.
Then he heard a loud crack from the woods. The duck jumped and flew back towards the water after first catching a glimpse of the hunters with guns trying to kill them.
Other ducks were nearby. They heard the sounds and fled deeper into the center of the lake, too.
The ducks gathered together in fear.
“We must flee to the mountains away from here. We are not safe,” said one of the ducks.
The others agreed that they must fly away. All agreed except the one young duck.
“This is our home and here we are protected by the One above. Take refuge here in the waters and he will protect us,” said the duck.
“But we won’t be able to go to the shore ever again!” said another duck.
“If they come back, then we can return here to the waters. This is our home. This is our lake. The One above will protect us,” said the young duck.
Some listened to him and stayed while others fled to the mountains.
Every time the ducks neared the shore, they heard the strange duck sound and the gun shots. A few more fled to the mounts while others stayed on the lake.
That night a great storm approached from the west. Rain came, followed by lightning. Lightning struck a tree along the shore and the forest caught on fire.
The ducks heard a new sound from tree shore. The hunters were screaming in fear from the rain and the fire. The sounds of their voices faded away as they fled away from there.
The fire spread towards the mountains. The ducks there came flying back to take refuge on the lake.
The rain poured harder and put out the fires. The next morning, the lake was at peace again.
The ducks never abandoned the refuge of the lake again. They were safe forever under the protect from the One above.
“In the LORD I take refuge; how can you say to me, ‘Flee like a bird to the mountains!'”
Psalm 11:1
Reflection Questions
- Why did the ducks want to flee to the mountains?
- When was the last time you felt afraid? Did you turn to God in prayer or avoid the situation?
- When you feel afraid, who do you go to to help you feel safe?
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