Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A Light-Bulb Moment


It's an incredible adventure. I'm learning to appreciate each twist and turn on this road called life. Instead of focusing on a particular destination, God's teaching me to enjoy every step along the way. More often than not, He uses simple examples to get His point across. And He uses our dogs regularly to convey His message.

It hadn't been an issue before. Our Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Joe, was good about taking medicine when it was necessary. One of his toenails had been torn off, making it a priority for him to take antibiotic twice a day. I poked the pills into a piece of hotdog, anticipating his eagerness to devour the treat.

With tail wagging and toy in his mouth, Joe trotted over to see what I had for him. A sniff of the tasty morsel and his ball hit the ground. But instead of gobbling up the pill-containing hotdog, he ejected the fragment onto the ground. He was suspicious. After two more failed attempts, he carefully nibbled the meat, leaving the pills on the porch of his doghouse. His sheepish look and quick lick of my hand made me realize he knew I wasn't pleased.

What could I do? He was on to me. He realized these special treats contained something he didn't like. Cleverly, he had figured out how to remove the pills, yet still enjoy the hotdog. I, on the other hand, still had to come up with a way to get Joe to take his antibiotics.
 
Frustration aside, I experienced a light bulb moment. There was a bigger lesson here. And it was for me. How many times had I approached my Heavenly Father much like Joe had approached me - excited to see what He had for me in His Word? But as I took in the passage of scripture, the hard truth rubbed me the wrong way and I rejected it. I still clung to the promises and passages that encouraged me, but carefully skirted around those verses that pointed out the things I needed to change.

Just like the antibiotic was necessary to clear up Joe's infection, the difficult truths in God's Word are necessary to purge the things from my life that stunt my spiritual growth. The book of Hebrews describes this truth as a well-honed sword, "For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart," (Hebrews 4:12; KJV).

All of God's Word is relevant for my life - even the parts that are hard to swallow. Today I have the opportunity to embrace each truth, knowing that it is designed to make me whole - conforming me to the image of Christ.

What step will you take to embrace the truth today?

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for everything You put in Your Word. I know every bit of it is designed to help me grow into the person of God You'd have me to be. Forgive me for having a bad attitude when I'm faced with difficult truths. Help me embrace them today. In Jesus' name, Amen.


*I'm hosting over at Living by Grace today. Come join in the discussion!

12 comments:

  1. What a fabulous analogy, Maria! So true.

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    1. Great to see you Joanne! Thanks for your kind words of encouragement. God bless! :)

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  2. Wonderful!

    I've spit out a few hard to swallow pills in my younger days. I've found over time that it's best to just take my medicine and embrace it...

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    1. Wonderful to see you Loree! Way to learn from your earlier mistakes! Love to hear that you're embracing God's 'medicine' even when it's difficult. You inspire me!

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  3. Hi Maria - great analogy! And i know what you mean about the dogs eating everything but what is there to help, definitely something I will remember next time I read the word. Take it ALL in. God bless
    Tracy

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    1. Hi Tracy! I'm so grateful the Lord teaches me lessons through my pets - somehow it makes it easier for me to understand. That's the simple gal in me! Love your determination to 'take it ALL in' when you read God's word. Hugs & Blessings!

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  4. Hi Maria,

    I hope you solved the doggie pill problem. Getting a cat to swallow a pill almost required fasting and prayer!

    Yes, we often dodge conviction. Isn't it funny though how once we decide to obey it wasn't all that hard?

    Blessings,
    Susan :)

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    1. Great to see you Susan! Yes, we found out Joe likes peanut butter - worked like a charm! Have you tried pill pockets with your kitty?

      Great motivation for obeying - it's not so hard when we just do it! Have a fantastic week! Hugs & Blessings!

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  5. Goliath is a lot like Joe. he loves to take his medicine, until the last medicine he had. It was had an overpowering smell to it. no matter what I put it in, he would eat around it. I would end up having to pry his mouth open and put it at the back of his mouth and pray my hand got out in time!!! Then I found some medicine we had left over from his surgery that was more powerful. it was a pill with no smell. he went back to taking the good with the bad. I thought of trying to get Goliath his medicine and laughing until I got to the transition part about God and hoping He doesn't have to do the same with me!!! That is a lesson we all need to learn. I hope that after more years of being out of God's will, then in His will, I have learned this. I think God has shown this to me more thru death than any other place. The taking of the medicine is hard, but we have no choice. The sting of death is painful, but our loved ones are gone. No amount of denial, tears, pleading, or pain can bring them back. We can face it and move pass the shock. it is the aftertaste that lingers. The loneliness, the guilt of what we did or didn't do, things said or not said. The pain of not seeing them tomorrow, or the day after. While out of God's will I lost my mom and my companion of almost 12 years, my dog Duchess. Suprising Mom was easiest to let go off. She, for many years, after having 3 strokes, and was bed ridden, unable to talk, or do anything for herself. I knew she was saved and I would see her again one day. God was still there for me, He comforted me and gave me the strength to be there for my dad. My dog on the other hand, was taken suddenly. I felt robbed. I was angry, hurt and unpleasant to be around. She had been my confindant. She had been my comforter thru all the bad times in my life. I used to tell God, (yes, I said tell)that she could not die until I was married because I would not be able to handle her loss. and I was right. For 1 week I was hateful, rude, always crying. None of my coworkers knew what was wrong. finally the following week I was able to let it go, but I never had that peace. Thru the other 2 pet deaths, I have learned to give it to God. He does care about what we care about, and He loves us. the second one I still wallowed in my grief and pain for a couple of days before asking for help. The last one, who died of cancer, I gave to Him the moment I found out. techinally before, I knew someting was wrong, and told God, standing in the waiting room that what ever it was, I was going to praise Him in this storm. I prayed before going in, while waiting on the results and after the results. I thank Him for every day that He gave me with Lexie. the friday evening she died in my arms, I shed a few tears, because my snuggle bunny was gone. but in that moment, God healed my heart. He had answered the only 2 requests I had asked for Lexie, to know when to let her go and to be there when she did. I will never forget lying next to her, telling her what a good friend she had been, that I loved her and that I would be ok once she went. She died an hour later. Even if He had not done that, I still would have thanked Him and praised Him. He gave me 4 months to love and dote on her. To get all the kisses I could, and to stroke those velvety ears of hers that were so soft and long. With Life come death, with love comes pain. All we can do is cast all our care upon Him, for He careth for us!!!

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    1. Wonderful to see you Sherry! Thank you so much for sharing your story! Death is definitely a hard pill to swallow - even though we know it is a part of life. The mental 'knowing' meets with the upheaval of our hearts emotions, and we're left to sort out the reality. So sorry to hear of the loss of your Mom and your special pets.

      I can relate to your experience surrounding your Mom's death. My Dad passed away ten years ago following chronic illness. Although it wasn't easy, I knew he had suffered for a long time. Death is certainly a part of life that makes us appreciate our loved ones (people and pets alike!)even more!

      Love the reminder that we CAN cast all our care on the Lord - because He cares for us more than we can comprehend!

      Hugs & Blessings to you Sherry! :)

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