(I recently had the opportunity to share an inspirational talk called “Surrender.” A slightly modified version follows.)
In the past, I’ve spoken about topics that I’ve really made my own. But today, I’m talking about a topic that is fairly new territory for me…something I’m just beginning to learn about. Not too long ago, I walked by the display of new books at the library and this one jumped out at me: Surrender! The Life Changing Power of Doing God’s Will by Father Larry Richards. Now I’m surprised I didn’t turn around and run out the door right then and there because “Surrender” is a word I really haven’t liked much. But for some reason, this book had me waving a white flag from the get-go. Much to my surprise, I checked it out and brought it home.
Has anyone else felt uneasy about the word “surrender”? To me it has often had the negative implications of losing or giving up. Here’s one definition of “surrender” I found on dictionary.com: “to yield (something) to the possession or power of another.” So how about “to yield [one’s life] to the power of [God]? Now that’s a definition I can live with. In fact, I’ve wondered if I brought the book home because of its positive subtitle: “The Life-Changing Power of Doing God’s Will.” I’d sure like to experience more of the “life-changing power” of God in my life. Wouldn’t you? The book’s chapter titles offered some great promises too:
• Surrender and Go to Heaven!
• Surrender and Be Free!
• Surrender and Be an Icon of Jesus! (more on that one later)
• Surrender and Hear God’s Voice!
• Surrender and Discover God’s Will!
• Surrender and Live God’s Will!
This type of surrender sure sounds like a win-win, all around good situation to me. So I decided to give the book a go. However, one of the first things I had to surrender is Protestant prejudice about reading a book by a Catholic priest. When I was in Middle School, my family moved next door to a Catholic family who not only had a daughter my age, but they had horses too. However, because of cultural paradigms, my mom wouldn’t let us be friends. She was concerned that I might in turn meet this girl’s friends and become romantically involved with a Catholic…with someone whose religious doctrines and practices she perceived as being so different from my own. So, as I began reading the book, I made a sincere effort to not let theological or cultural differences keep me from hearing the spirit and heart of Fr. Richards’ message. The book ended up resonating with me deeply. I realized that several aspects of surrendering were already part of my prayer practice, and now I also am making a conscious effort to incorporate several new ideas from the book into my life. I’m not suggesting that everyone go out and read this book. It just happened to be the right book at the right time for me; and just the very act of reading it helped me learn that surrender requires listening to God with an open heart.
As we go forward today, I encourage you to keep your heart and thought open and see what new insights God might have for you on this topic. What might surrender look like in your life right now? What outgrown beliefs can you let go of, and what new directions and ideas are begging to be accepted?
Over the past month, I’ve found the concept of surrender popping up all over the place. Biblical examples of the life-changing power of surrender are abundant. For example there was Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac but then also to change course when God directed him otherwise. There was Moses’ agreeing to lead the Children of Israel out of Egypt even though he was slow of speech, and of course, Jesus’ facing of the crucifixion and the poignant words he uttered in the Garden of Gethsemane, “Thy will be done.” There is probably no better example of complete surrender than Jesus. And then there is Saul who had persecuted Christians, but when he surrendered to the calling of the Christ was transformed, and as Paul became one of the major players in establishing early Christian churches and communities. One of the Biblical characters that I’ve enjoyed thinking about lately is Ananias, a key figure in Paul’s story. When Jesus appeared to Saul, Saul was made blind, and Ananias was given the task of healing him. Here’s Ananias’ story as told in The Message (Acts 9:10-19):
There was a disciple in Damascus by the name of Ananias. The Master spoke to him in a vision: "Ananias." "Yes, Master?" he answered. “Get up and go over to Straight Avenue. Ask at the house of Judas for a man from Tarsus. His name is Saul. He's there praying. He has just had a dream in which he saw a man named Ananias enter the house and lay hands on him so he could see again.” Ananias protested, "Master, you can't be serious. Everybody's talking about this man and the terrible things he's been doing, his reign of terror against your people in Jerusalem! And now he's shown up here with papers from the Chief Priest that give him license to do the same to us." But the Master said, "Don't argue. Go! I have picked him as my personal representative to non-Jews and kings and Jews…." So Ananias went and found the house, placed his hands on blind Saul, and said, "Brother Saul, the Master sent me, the same Jesus you saw on your way here. He sent me so you could see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." No sooner were the words out of his mouth than something like scales fell from Saul's eyes—he could see again! He got to his feet, was baptized, and sat down with them to a hearty meal.
Did you catch the “Ananias protested” part? Jesus’ followers hadn’t had it easy. They had been practicing and spreading their faith, but in many ways they also had just been trying to stay alive and not be put in jail or stoned to death, and now Ananias was being asked to not just go see the guy behind all the terror, but to heal him. Ananias had to totally surrender his own sense of who Saul was as well as concern for personal safety. Ananias’ act of surrender took humility, great forgiveness, and a lot of courage.
Surrender means having courage and trusting that our loving God knows what He’s doing. It requires facing fears with real trust in God’s presence and His control over the outcome of our lives. Sometimes what God tells us to do may not make sense, but He will give us the courage, clarity, and strength necessary to do His will, and His will is always good.
I recently was listening to the radio and heard “Whatever You’re Doing” by Sanctus Real. I think it does a wonderful job of capturing the heart of surrender and perhaps some of what Saul and Ananias might have been thinking and feeling as they faced their encounter with each other. Perhaps you’ve had some of these feelings too. (Here’s a link to the song and lyrics http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3B-udGxwLV0.)
“It feels like chaos, but somehow there’s peace.” That’s my favorite line. My husband and I were talking about Ananias recently and Mike said, “I don’t think this guy went in there shaking in his boots (or sandals). I think he went in with confidence that nothing could stand against God and his Christ…nothing!” But in the middle of it all, these Bible characters don’t know how their stories end. In another thought provoking book I’ve read this year, I Refuse to Lead a Dying Church, Paul Nixon describes an apostolic life (both past and present) as “anything but settled,” but that’s OK. Surrender sometimes means being OK with unsettled for a while. But not having all the answers in a given moment doesn’t need to mean a lack of peace when you understand that God is at work doing “something heavenly.” “It feels like chaos, but somehow there’s peace.” God gives us peace.
My church’s Covenant talks about striving together to: “Be Spirit-saturated, surrendering to the Holy Spirit in everything we do, as the condition through which we more effectively accomplish our practice of spirituality. This includes repenting of self-centeredness and surrendering to the new birth promised through the Comforter, the Holy Spirit.” What really jumped out at me is that surrender goes hand in hand with repenting of self-centeredness. Or in other words, surrender is about love.
You may remember that one of the chapter titles in Larry Richards’ book is “Surrender and Be an Icon for Jesus!” Here’s an example of what he means. I really appreciate the spirit of his message. Richards writes:
I love the story of the man who was captured in World War II and thrown in a Japanese prisoner of war camp. He was treated badly, but not as badly as another guy, a Japanese who was trying to help Americans. The captors tortured the Japanese man every day and deprived him of food. Every day, he would be thrown into the same cell as the American, and every day the American would take his own food and give it to the Japanese man and try to heal his wounds as best as possible. One day they had tortured the Japanese man so badly that when they threw him back in the cell with the American, the American knew that he was going to die. So he knelt next to him, and said, 'You know, you are probably going to die tonight. But you don't have to be afraid. If you just give your life to Jesus you will live forever.' You know what the Japanese man said to the American? He said, 'If Jesus is anything like you, I can't wait to meet him.' Could people say that about us?…Could they say, “If Jesus Christ is anything like you, I can’t wait to meet him?” (pages 91-92)
Good question. To be an icon of Jesus, we need to surrender or let a little of self die each day, so that when people look at us they see the Christ. Perhaps what I appreciated most about Father Richards’ book is that it helped me see that surrendering doesn’t always have to be a big momentous thing, it can be a moment by moment, day by day practice…a practice God helps us with.
The Covenant sentences we looked at talks about surrendering to the new birth. Mary Baker Eddy, who founded the Christian Science church writes, “The new birth is not the work of a moment. It begins with moments, and goes on with years; moments of surrender to God, of childlike trust and joyful adoption of good; moments of self-abnegation, self-consecration, heaven-born hope, and spiritual love.” (Miscellaneous Writings 15:13)
I have one more example of surrender for you. It’s from a talk on by Oprah Winfrey. I think you will enjoy hearing her story. Oprah fell in love with the book “The Color Purple” and was ecstatic to have an opportunity to audition for a part in the movie. The following youtube video tells what happened:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KrWxNJV6jJc (Note: I only used the following clips: 3:21-7:37 & 8:56-9:42).
I love that Oprah made a conscious effort to stick with a posture of surrender until she felt complete peace and also felt like she could bless another person in the role that she wanted so badly. Sometimes surrender is a repeated and/or multistep process requiring persistence. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Keep letting go until you feel trust and peace, until you feel God’s blessing.
So in summary…
• Our dictionary definition led to the idea that “Surrender” means yielding one’s life to the power of God.
• As I found in my approach to reading Larry Richards’ book, it means listening to God with an open heart.
• Like Ananias it means expressing courage and trusting that God knows what He’s doing.
•As Sanctus Real sings, it means not being afraid if things sometimes feel a bit unsettled or chaotic...right there we can also feel peace.
• As the covenant and the story about the man in the prisoner of war camp indicate, surrender is about giving up self-centeredness and actively loving more day by day, moment by moment.
• And as Oprah shared, sometimes letting go takes persistence in order to reap the fullness of the blessing.
(Note: After praying and singing together, we ended with the following benediction.)
May you feel your life molded by the hand of God and your days filled with moments of sweet surrender.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
“No Worries" or Lessons I’ve Learned from Working with Ari
I recently had the opportunity to share an inspirational talk called “No Worries or Lessons I’ve Learned from Working with Ari.” A modified version follows:
In May, we adopted a handsome, endearing Sheltie named Ari. He has been a wonderful blessing and addition to our family.
Like all of us, Ari has special gifts. One of Ari’s talents is “singing” on command; we’ve had lots of fun with his musical howling. But also like all of us, Ari has a few things in life that he finds a bit challenging such as the vacuum cleaner and the mixer. Just getting them out brings forth a bark or two, but turning them on, drives him absolutely crazy.
Ari also used to get excited and start barking when he saw squirrels, rabbits, and even other people on our walks. Now as we approach something I think might excite him, I happily reassure him, “No, worries, here comes a friend” or “That’s just a squirrel Ari, no worries.” We’re still working on not barking at other dogs, but as long as the coast is clear of canine friends, I can usually enjoy our walks as good thinking and praying time.
One day on our walk, Ari was calm and having a great time, but I on the other hand was quite concerned about several things in my life. Then the thought came, “No worries, it’s just the mixer.” I laughed and began to let go of my anxiety. Now to Ari, the mixer or vacuum might seem like the devil or big bad wolf, but to you and me, the vacuum means a clean house and the mixer a yummy treat in the making. From our perspective, we know that what is driving Ari crazy is not only nothing to be concerned about but actually something very good going on. And isn’t that often the case with our lives? We get all worried about something, forgetting that God’s got things under control…that only good is really going on. And if we would only take a moment to listen, I bet we would hear God telling us, “Don’t worry, be happy. Don’t worry, be happy” (imagine Bobby McFerrin singing).
The Bible is full of commands to “Fear not.” One of my favorite Bible stories about not being fearful or taken in by evil trying to our attention is the story of David and Goliath. (For a chuckle, check out this Veggie Tales clip of David and the Giant Pickle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Qmj2fXPvXc, and then next time something bothers you, you can say, “No worries, it’s just a giant pickle.” I find humor often helps me face fear.)
Here’s a bit of the back story on David and Goliath: David, was a shepherd. His whole town was upset by the soldier-giant Goliath. No one dared accept Goliath’s challenge to fight…no one except David. To him, Goliath was no more of a threat than the wild beasts from which he had repeatedly protected his sheep. When David volunteered to fight Goliath, King Saul offered David the use of his finest armor and weapons, but David decided to pass on the king’s offer. He told Saul, “The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.” (I Sam. 17:37) So, David took his trusty slingshot, which he had proven to be so effective over and over again in defending his herd, and put five smooth stones in his shepherd’s bag. He only needed to use one stone. One strike and Goliath was out.
Recently I decided to take stock of my own smooth stones. I began to explore what has helped me work through challenges in the past. Here are five smooth stones, or spiritual tools, that have proven effective for me:
First, “The Word of God,” including bible verses and songs or sometimes an idea a friend shares. I try to keep a spiritual quote handy on both my electronic and actual desktops for my eye to light upon during the day. A favorite Bible verse I often pray with is this one, “I know the thoughts that I think toward you says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 19:22) I find comfort in reminding myself that God is constantly giving me and others the exact thoughts we need to respond to the moment in a calm healing manner. Singing God’s word really helps me too, and I often find additional strength by actually singing the words to songs or hymns out loud. I’ve also been caught whistling worship songs in the halls where I work.
My 2nd stone is “Praying with Others.” When the going gets tough, I often ask for help. In James (5:14) it says, “Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him…and the prayer of faith will save the sick.” I’m especially grateful for the prayers of Christian Science practitioners, whose vocations are the practice of spiritual healing. They are available 24/7 to pray for people when needed. Sometimes I ask for the prayers of family members or friends. My church has an active Prayer Ministry team eager to pray with people through any situation. I am also grateful to everyone who has let me pray for them through this prayer ministry. Invariably my prayers for others bless me too and have helped pull me through some difficult times of my own.
The 3rd stone, “Gratitude,” is a way to glorify God. It is hard to grateful and sad or worried at the same time. I remember one time when our children were little, I heard them downstairs them yelling at each other. While normally I would have run to intervene, this time I found myself sitting down on the floor right where I was and expressing gratitude for the exact opposite of what my ears were hearing, “Thank you God for having done everything so well, for making Heidi and Lincoln peaceful and calm. Thank you for making them gentle and forgiving,” etc. until suddenly I realized it was quiet. They’d worked things out and were again playing happily. My prayer of gratitude was the only action needed. Gotthold Lessing says, “A single grateful thought toward heaven is the most complete prayer.” I find it helpful sometimes to look back and remember experiences like this one when I’ve felt God’s healing presence. Gratitude for past proofs of God’s care helps give me encouragement and expectancy of good in present situations.
My 4th stone is “Being Still.” In Psalms (46:10) we are told, “Be still and know that I am God.” Sometimes I have to consciously make myself slow down to hear what God is telling me. This can take the form of a walk, a long hot bath, or the posture of a yoga prayer pose. For me there is nothing like literally getting down on my knees to silence the mind’s chatter. Sometimes simply folding my hands and bowing my head helps. Writing or journaling also is effective in helping me still thought and hear God.
However, there are other times, especially when fear tries to paralyze me or pain is great, that I need to be up and doing. My 5th stone is “Doing Good.” I remember times in my life when simply loading the dishwasher seemed like a big effort, but getting out of bed when I wasn’t feeling well and doing so was a gift to my family and an important step towards healing. There is always something we can do to express love towards others, whether it be a simple note or phone call, a great big hug, or a thought of blessing sent someone’s way. Love heals. Mary Baker Eddy, who founded the Christian Science church wrote, “The prayer that reforms the sinner and heals the sick is an absolute faith that all things are possible to God,--a spiritual understanding of Him, an unselfed love.”
So the first spiritual lesson I’ve learned working with Ari is “No Worries. It’s only the mixer,”…from God’s perspective, only good is going on. Whenever something seems like a Goliath to Ari, there is a smooth stone that takes care of the situation almost every time, it’s spelled “T-R-E-A-T.” (We have to spell words sometimes if we don’t want to excite him.) We too need to use our smooth stones and keep our focus on God the way Ari focuses on a treat.
The second lesson I’ve learned from Ari is to have compassion on myself when things don’t turn around as quickly as I’d like. On another walk with Ari, I was feeling guilty about a challenge I’d been working on for a long time. Why couldn’t I get things right? What must the person I’d asked to pray with me think about my needing help day after day? Then I thought, “I don’t love Ari any less because he still hasn’t figured out that the mixer and vacuum are harmless. I don’t think he is a bad dog or blame him for these fears. I just smile and calmly reassure him. I know he’ll eventually get it.” So, don’t let discouragement in. Sometimes it takes more than one smooth stone. David had lots of slingshot practice with lions and bears before defeating Goliath. Whatever trials come your way, no matter how long it takes to work through them, or how messy it gets. God is going to stand by and love you no matter what.
One of the times I still really need to stand by Ari is when he sees another dog approaching. Given the opportunity, he will bark loudly and rush towards the dog. So I shorten his leash and begin talking to him. “No worries, here comes a friend.” I’ve gotten him to a point where he’ll sit and just quietly growl , at least for a while, but as the dog being walked comes closer and closer it often becomes more than he can handle. So sometimes I’ll simply pick him up. There is something about being carried that calms him down. As long as I’m carrying Ari, he is quiet. It reminds me of a story which is probably familiar to many of you called, “Footprints in the Sand”:
One night I had a dream. I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord, and across the sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to me, and the other to the Lord. When the last scene of my life flashed before us, I looked back at the footprints in the sand. I noticed that many times along the path of my life, there was only one set of footprints. I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in my life. This really bothered me, and I questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you would walk with me all the way; but I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why in times when I needed you the most, you should leave me.” The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child. I love you, and I would never, never leave you during your times of trial and suffering. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."
So Lesson #3 from Ari is, “No Worries…when things are hardest, God carries us.” It’s as simple as that. God is a patient Father-Mother, who comforts us until we too see that “All is well.”
I never imagined when we adopted Ari that his impact on my life would be so profound. Thanks Ari, you’ve been an angel in more ways than one and have helped me get a clearer glimpse of the kingdom of heaven truly within and at hand.
In May, we adopted a handsome, endearing Sheltie named Ari. He has been a wonderful blessing and addition to our family.
Like all of us, Ari has special gifts. One of Ari’s talents is “singing” on command; we’ve had lots of fun with his musical howling. But also like all of us, Ari has a few things in life that he finds a bit challenging such as the vacuum cleaner and the mixer. Just getting them out brings forth a bark or two, but turning them on, drives him absolutely crazy.
Ari also used to get excited and start barking when he saw squirrels, rabbits, and even other people on our walks. Now as we approach something I think might excite him, I happily reassure him, “No, worries, here comes a friend” or “That’s just a squirrel Ari, no worries.” We’re still working on not barking at other dogs, but as long as the coast is clear of canine friends, I can usually enjoy our walks as good thinking and praying time.
One day on our walk, Ari was calm and having a great time, but I on the other hand was quite concerned about several things in my life. Then the thought came, “No worries, it’s just the mixer.” I laughed and began to let go of my anxiety. Now to Ari, the mixer or vacuum might seem like the devil or big bad wolf, but to you and me, the vacuum means a clean house and the mixer a yummy treat in the making. From our perspective, we know that what is driving Ari crazy is not only nothing to be concerned about but actually something very good going on. And isn’t that often the case with our lives? We get all worried about something, forgetting that God’s got things under control…that only good is really going on. And if we would only take a moment to listen, I bet we would hear God telling us, “Don’t worry, be happy. Don’t worry, be happy” (imagine Bobby McFerrin singing).
The Bible is full of commands to “Fear not.” One of my favorite Bible stories about not being fearful or taken in by evil trying to our attention is the story of David and Goliath. (For a chuckle, check out this Veggie Tales clip of David and the Giant Pickle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Qmj2fXPvXc, and then next time something bothers you, you can say, “No worries, it’s just a giant pickle.” I find humor often helps me face fear.)
Here’s a bit of the back story on David and Goliath: David, was a shepherd. His whole town was upset by the soldier-giant Goliath. No one dared accept Goliath’s challenge to fight…no one except David. To him, Goliath was no more of a threat than the wild beasts from which he had repeatedly protected his sheep. When David volunteered to fight Goliath, King Saul offered David the use of his finest armor and weapons, but David decided to pass on the king’s offer. He told Saul, “The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.” (I Sam. 17:37) So, David took his trusty slingshot, which he had proven to be so effective over and over again in defending his herd, and put five smooth stones in his shepherd’s bag. He only needed to use one stone. One strike and Goliath was out.
Recently I decided to take stock of my own smooth stones. I began to explore what has helped me work through challenges in the past. Here are five smooth stones, or spiritual tools, that have proven effective for me:
First, “The Word of God,” including bible verses and songs or sometimes an idea a friend shares. I try to keep a spiritual quote handy on both my electronic and actual desktops for my eye to light upon during the day. A favorite Bible verse I often pray with is this one, “I know the thoughts that I think toward you says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 19:22) I find comfort in reminding myself that God is constantly giving me and others the exact thoughts we need to respond to the moment in a calm healing manner. Singing God’s word really helps me too, and I often find additional strength by actually singing the words to songs or hymns out loud. I’ve also been caught whistling worship songs in the halls where I work.
My 2nd stone is “Praying with Others.” When the going gets tough, I often ask for help. In James (5:14) it says, “Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him…and the prayer of faith will save the sick.” I’m especially grateful for the prayers of Christian Science practitioners, whose vocations are the practice of spiritual healing. They are available 24/7 to pray for people when needed. Sometimes I ask for the prayers of family members or friends. My church has an active Prayer Ministry team eager to pray with people through any situation. I am also grateful to everyone who has let me pray for them through this prayer ministry. Invariably my prayers for others bless me too and have helped pull me through some difficult times of my own.
The 3rd stone, “Gratitude,” is a way to glorify God. It is hard to grateful and sad or worried at the same time. I remember one time when our children were little, I heard them downstairs them yelling at each other. While normally I would have run to intervene, this time I found myself sitting down on the floor right where I was and expressing gratitude for the exact opposite of what my ears were hearing, “Thank you God for having done everything so well, for making Heidi and Lincoln peaceful and calm. Thank you for making them gentle and forgiving,” etc. until suddenly I realized it was quiet. They’d worked things out and were again playing happily. My prayer of gratitude was the only action needed. Gotthold Lessing says, “A single grateful thought toward heaven is the most complete prayer.” I find it helpful sometimes to look back and remember experiences like this one when I’ve felt God’s healing presence. Gratitude for past proofs of God’s care helps give me encouragement and expectancy of good in present situations.
My 4th stone is “Being Still.” In Psalms (46:10) we are told, “Be still and know that I am God.” Sometimes I have to consciously make myself slow down to hear what God is telling me. This can take the form of a walk, a long hot bath, or the posture of a yoga prayer pose. For me there is nothing like literally getting down on my knees to silence the mind’s chatter. Sometimes simply folding my hands and bowing my head helps. Writing or journaling also is effective in helping me still thought and hear God.
However, there are other times, especially when fear tries to paralyze me or pain is great, that I need to be up and doing. My 5th stone is “Doing Good.” I remember times in my life when simply loading the dishwasher seemed like a big effort, but getting out of bed when I wasn’t feeling well and doing so was a gift to my family and an important step towards healing. There is always something we can do to express love towards others, whether it be a simple note or phone call, a great big hug, or a thought of blessing sent someone’s way. Love heals. Mary Baker Eddy, who founded the Christian Science church wrote, “The prayer that reforms the sinner and heals the sick is an absolute faith that all things are possible to God,--a spiritual understanding of Him, an unselfed love.”
So the first spiritual lesson I’ve learned working with Ari is “No Worries. It’s only the mixer,”…from God’s perspective, only good is going on. Whenever something seems like a Goliath to Ari, there is a smooth stone that takes care of the situation almost every time, it’s spelled “T-R-E-A-T.” (We have to spell words sometimes if we don’t want to excite him.) We too need to use our smooth stones and keep our focus on God the way Ari focuses on a treat.
The second lesson I’ve learned from Ari is to have compassion on myself when things don’t turn around as quickly as I’d like. On another walk with Ari, I was feeling guilty about a challenge I’d been working on for a long time. Why couldn’t I get things right? What must the person I’d asked to pray with me think about my needing help day after day? Then I thought, “I don’t love Ari any less because he still hasn’t figured out that the mixer and vacuum are harmless. I don’t think he is a bad dog or blame him for these fears. I just smile and calmly reassure him. I know he’ll eventually get it.” So, don’t let discouragement in. Sometimes it takes more than one smooth stone. David had lots of slingshot practice with lions and bears before defeating Goliath. Whatever trials come your way, no matter how long it takes to work through them, or how messy it gets. God is going to stand by and love you no matter what.
One of the times I still really need to stand by Ari is when he sees another dog approaching. Given the opportunity, he will bark loudly and rush towards the dog. So I shorten his leash and begin talking to him. “No worries, here comes a friend.” I’ve gotten him to a point where he’ll sit and just quietly growl , at least for a while, but as the dog being walked comes closer and closer it often becomes more than he can handle. So sometimes I’ll simply pick him up. There is something about being carried that calms him down. As long as I’m carrying Ari, he is quiet. It reminds me of a story which is probably familiar to many of you called, “Footprints in the Sand”:
One night I had a dream. I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord, and across the sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one belonged to me, and the other to the Lord. When the last scene of my life flashed before us, I looked back at the footprints in the sand. I noticed that many times along the path of my life, there was only one set of footprints. I also noticed that it happened at the very lowest and saddest times in my life. This really bothered me, and I questioned the Lord about it. "Lord, you said that once I decided to follow you, you would walk with me all the way; but I have noticed that during the most troublesome times in my life, there is only one set of footprints. I don't understand why in times when I needed you the most, you should leave me.” The Lord replied, "My precious, precious child. I love you, and I would never, never leave you during your times of trial and suffering. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you."
So Lesson #3 from Ari is, “No Worries…when things are hardest, God carries us.” It’s as simple as that. God is a patient Father-Mother, who comforts us until we too see that “All is well.”
I never imagined when we adopted Ari that his impact on my life would be so profound. Thanks Ari, you’ve been an angel in more ways than one and have helped me get a clearer glimpse of the kingdom of heaven truly within and at hand.
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