I was sitting in my room watching TV, unwinding from the day when my step brother entered my door-way and said that his mom wanted me. Groaning slightly I stood and walked hesitantly to the living room. Walking towards the couch I say: ‘Yes Mama?’ She looks at me, gives me a wryly smile and holds my puppy up for me to see saying. “Look at Andy’s paw.” I look at my six-month old puppy and from his left paw there is an inch and a half fish hook sticking out of it. Quickly my agitation, tiredness and exhaustion escape me; I wrap Andy in my arms, hold him lovingly, covering him with kisses and coo telling him it will be okay.
I franticly ask her what happened. Apparently my rambunctious puppy was wondering around the garage and somehow found a fish hock and stepped on it. I held Andy in my arms and tried to look at his paw; of course he didn’t like this and tried to squirm away from me. After realizing we couldn’t get it out we called around to see if we could take him somewhere, nothing was open. We wrapped his paw in gauze and tapped it so he couldn’t lick or naw on it.
He allowed me to hold him for a few minutes and then started to squirm again. I grabbed his pillow and placed him on it. He sat there for a while and then got up and started walking around limping. He would sit down for a second after a few steps, whimper and then continued to walk around. I continued to place him back on the pillow but he just wouldn’t sit still. I tried to hold him in my arms but he kept crawling out of them. I finally just placed him on the floor and let him roam around free. Finally he lay down in a dark cold corner.
After watching him for a while I thought, “What a dumb thing to do.” Here I am holding him, giving him a pillow to sleep on and watching over him. Then he walks away from me and lies down in a depressing place. Thinking, I felt convicted.
Have you ever gotten into trouble, cried about it, asked for help and then turned your back on the person trying to help you? I know I have done this, a LOT, to one person – God.
Have you realized when things start going ‘wrong’ or not your way, you cry and whine to God. You ask Him, “Why me? Why now? What did I do?” You whine and complain, making it very well know that you are not happy and want something done. Then after your whining and complaining is done you wait and wait trying to see if something will happen or change. Slowly things seem to be looking up and you go on with your daily life, completely forgetting about God. While you’re on your way you hit speed-bumps because the thing you were complaining about weren’t completely fixed. You continue to whine and sometimes end yourself up in a place that you do not want to be.
This is what my puppy did, but unlike me – giving up on the puppy and letting him do whatever he wanted and stopped trying to help him; God never gives up on you. No matter how many times you cry and complain to God, He still wraps you up in His arms and holds you tight. No matter how many times you crawl out of His arms or push Him away, God still tries to help you and picks you back up.
And if you give up on yourself and decide to wallow in your pain, guilt, shame and depression; God walks right in there with you, wipes you off, picks you up and carries you out.
God hates to see His children suffer, He hates to see us hurting and struggling; all He wants to do is wrap you in His arms and protect us. But sadly there is only so much we allow God to do. We think we can take care of ourselves, we believe that we can do anything. We believe, “If I don’t look out for myself then who will?”
We need to remember that God is there for us. When we are in that ‘dark corner’ He is there to lift us up and make us feel better. When He comes to help and we turn Him away - it hurts Him.
Psalm 23:4 says, He will walk with us and keep us safe through the valley of death - that’s proof that He is with us in that dark corner and He will keep us safe. But unlike what the puppy did, we need to go to Him and trust Him for comfort.
The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.
[PS - This is an old article from Corruption Magazine. It has been revamped.]
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