Whose Leading Who?

There seem to be a good number of dogs in our area. They are big, small, lots of fur and short hair. A number of years ago, when we had a dog of our own, we knew each dog and each master. It was a community thing. Something to do with shared interest. We all loved our pets. Every time we passed on the street we would stop and talk, “dog.” Not barking as in dog language, but about dogs, our dog, their dog, someone else’s dogs. The most interesting characteristic of most dogs is not something you see on the outside but something that presents itself from the inside out. You can call it character or you can call it their temperament. Most of the time our dog was quiet and docile. She would wander out to the front street, sit on the bottom sidewalk step and watch everyone going by. She would get up to greet each person going by especially the children. It was different when other dogs came by. For some reason she looked at most every other dog in the neighbourhood as a playmate. We would even use that old word, ‘frolic’ when the beagles came by. Each one provoked a different reaction, response and a different set of activities. The old spaniel deserved respect and received it. The lab and Kala rolled on the grass together. With the border collie, they went nose to nose and moved on. It was not unlike watching the interactions as seen in Disney’s animation of 101 Dalmatians. Which leads me to asking, why do they call it a lead? Who is leading who? Some dogs lead and pull, pull and pull. Kala was like that when you tied her on. She did not wear a collar very often but when she did, she pulled you all the time. With the spaniel and the setter, they walked beside their master enjoying the time together. Unfortunately for the owner of the Pekinese they were the one leading or should I say, pulling. Different temperaments, different personalities and decidedly different responses to their masters command. Watch out for that other work, command. We are like these pets, each with our own personalities and idiosyncracies. And people in our lives bring out different things in us. Some bring out the best in us while other motivate us in unpleasant ways. Some we party with, some we lock horns with and some we just walk away from. Oh, by the way, we affect others in similar ways. It is this interaction that helps us recognize the best in ourselves and share it with those around us. Around all of us. We study with some, we share with others, we help many and we grow from all of it. This is all part and parcel of having a God given purpose in life. God put within each of us a DNA that makes us who we are and what we do in life. He takes us and uses us where we can best be used. And just like the dogs walking down the street of life, we walk with our Master. I pray that God will use me wherever He wants with whoever crosses our path. Take time to ‘frolic’ or just spend time with others. How you walk with God is really the question. Are we in a hurry, content to walk beside or does God have to drag us? Which one have you chosen? Rob