Inspiration At Unlikely Times

When you ask the Lord for a blessing, you never know when or what He will provide.

While bathing the girls this week, I was struck by how very different they are. Bailey is my water dog - she'll get herself in the tub just so she can enjoy the warm water. She'll obey my every word, moving where I ask and staying when I need her to stay.

The best part is drying her off, though. She delights in the massage of the towel and getting all wrapped up. She'll hang out for ages until she's completely dry, giving me her back feet when I ask. In the end, her obedience makes the task much easier for both of us.

Sadie, on the other hand, is the complete opposite. She despises water, fights having to get into the tub and tucks her tail the whole time. She has to be as close to me as possible, which makes soaping and rinsing very difficult. She ignores basic obedience commands which means I have to forcibly move a 60 pound dog over and over again.

And drying her is incredibly difficult. She's in a hurry to move on with her life, regardless of the streams of water getting all over the place. We get it done, but she's impatient and causes more clean up as she tries to shake herself dry.

So as I recovered from the experience, I felt the tug of the Holy Spirit. How often am I like my obedient dog and how often am I more like the disobedient dog? Is God trying to complete a necessary task in my own life while I'm fighting tooth and nail? Am I allowing Him to work for my greater good or am I unwilling to even step foot in His direction?

In the end both of my dogs got clean, but one was a much more pleasurable experience than the other one. Imagine what our Christian walk could be like if we were so willing and obedient to the Lord's leading as one black dog is at bath time.