Going outside to fill the water bowl with fresh, cool water on this warm day, our dog ran to me like his life depended on it. I soon saw the flies. Those pesky flies swarming on and around him.
This year has been a bad one for flies bothering him so I got out the dog-safe bug spray. With the spray bottle behind my back I held on to his collar and began to spritz a small amount to his back. I released him knowing what would happen next.
His reaction is the same each time, run, dive to the ground, roll and rub the ground as if I just sprayed a deadly potion. Over and over again. Then, running to the evergreen trees as if the branches will magically remove what I just sprayed on.
The spray helps to keep the fly at bay. However, he doesn’t seem to appreciate it. Five minutes later I look outside to find his get-this-death-spray-off-of-me routine still in high gear. No matter how many times I try to convince him it is okay and it will help the fly situation, he still tries to get the “good” off his back.
If dogs were capable of hindsight, I’m sure he’d realize I wasn’t trying to kill him…only help him.
And, isn’t that like we humans. Change comes along. It’s not like it use to be or it is hard and we want to go back. Back like it used to be. Back where it was more comfortable. Back to where we knew how to deal with what life threw at us even if it was toxic and change needed to happen.
It reminds me of the Israelites grumbling to go back to Egypt. Back to Egypt where they were slaves. “At least” in Egypt they had all the food they wanted but in the desert–not so much. (Exodus 16) They were tired. They were hungry. They couldn’t see past their stomachs and realize they were free. Yet, they cried to go back…back to Egypt and slavery.
Yet, God supplied their needs. The Israelites, in their human minds, thought their time in the desert would look a different way. I bet if they were dogs, the whole lot of them would have rolled on the ground trying to rub off the “good” they just couldn’t see as good.
May I not grumble and complain (oh that is a tall order, isn’t it?) like the Israelites. May I remember God is God and I am not.
Sing Over Me 