Are You Ready To Work?

I have a dear friend who trains dogs. The dogs he trains are top-notch when he is finished with them; amazing examples of superior obedience.

He’s trained a dog to retrieve the kicking tee for a professional football team, numerous tracking dogs for organizations across the world and he’s trained Fluffy for the lady down the road.

Before he trained dogs, he trained horses, and I’ve heard him say more than once, the animal wasn’t the one that needed obedience training, it was the owner.

It’s true!

I’ve been around animals all my life and I can attest to that as I reflect on different situations with animals I’ve known. Consistent asks with reward result in obedience. Eventually, a simple ask or even direction given by gesture result in the desired action from the animal. Often, the animal knows what you expect without having to be directed at all- they learn right from wrong. And they learn to trust. The more time I spend with them, the more they crave my attention. They learn that when they do what I ask them to, I treat them kindly and with love. They misbehave, they get punished. Makes sense, right?

If we humans are so smart and superior to animals, why then do we make things so hard on ourselves?

Some days I wonder if I would rather have the life of a dog. Being told what to do and when to do it, and just rolling around in the grass when I can.

Reading about the life of Moses makes me sad. It’s like having a bunch of dogs that you work every day to train, spending hours and hours telling them the same things over and over and over again, reprimanding and rewarding time and time again, only to have them go “home” and act like they’ve got no sense at all. The owners come back and ask for forgiveness and you start it all over again.

Finally, you write it all down, detailed instructions, send them on their way once more, all the while knowing they will follow directions for a little while then they’ll start feeding the dog from the table and it will start begging every time anyone sits down to eat. Before they know it, that dog will be taking up the whole bed and looking down his nose when you tell him to get on his own bed. Even chewing up their favorite shoes and pooping in the closet when they get left at home instead of getting to ride in the front seat while the spouse sits in the back.

Sounds crazy, and it is! Just like all the teaching that the children of Israel had and dismissed over and over.

Even after all that Moses went through, he knew as he was about to die that they would revert to their craziness. He told them, he sacrificed for them, he punished them, he even wrote everything out for them and put good leaders in place for them, but they were still bent to be disobedient.

Some dog owners I know still dispose of a dog that won’t work for them.

There will be a day that we will be disposed of if we don’t work for HIM.

If I were a dog, I would want my master’s approval, so today I’m sitting pretty and waiting patiently for my next command.

My Bella loves to work and can’t stand for me to be mad at her, she pouts and tries to apologize...I understand because I don’t like for my master to be disappointed in me either. And after reading about how God destroyed those who angered Him, I’m thankful for the blood of Christ who suffered for me so that I can repent and be forgiven.

Although I’m saved from the fire of hell, I still don’t like the fire of disobedience that burns me when I sin. It happens, I’m not perfect-only Jesus is, but thank goodness I’m forgiven!

Today I read Psalm 90 twice. I feel for Moses as he readies himself to climb the mountain and die. One last letter for the children of Israel...One last plea for them to behave and a prayer of awe to God; acknowledging His power, mercy and awesomeness...His desires for His people. Wow.

I join in his prayer: (vs 12) ...teach ME to number my days, that I may apply my heart unto wisdom. Yes, God. Help me to savor every moment and learn from your word. Use me, help me to learn from my disobedience that I might not repeat, but be glad for the lesson because I know you love me. Show me how to serve you. Allow me to glorify you and bring honor to you, in all that you give me to do. All that you empower me to do. All that you bless me to do. (vs 15-17)