Last night my wife and I walked our dog as we customarily do every night. We’ve made it part of our daily “alone time” to catch up and discuss things on our minds. However, this night our dog encountered a problem.
Like many other dogs, our dog likes to sniff around and explore the different scents she encounters on our walks. When she finds a spot of interest to her, she’ll pull firmly and take her time taking it in. Afterward, she’ll mark the territory and move on.
This night, however, something happened. As we were walking her, she stopped at one spot and did as she always does. Distracted by our conversation, we didn’t notice what she was doing until we started walking again. When we did, she started limping heavily to the point she started licking her paw and eventually sat down from the pain.
She appeared to be in a significant amount of pain. We stopped, and I inspected her paw best I could but didn’t see any signs of injury in the darkness. I immediately called my neighbor, an ER vet, to ask him if he wouldn’t mind taking a look.
He kindly agreed and came over to examine her. After taking a quick look, he also couldn’t find any obvious signs of injury but did advise me that sometimes pets get stingers or tiny objects stuck in between their paw pads. This situation makes it extremely difficult to find the problem but that he would take another look in the day with more light and more time.
My dog’s story reminds me of how we’re all susceptible to injury when walking in the darkness. This world offers many temptations and traps that seem harmless but cause a great deal of debilitating pain when they embed themselves in our lives. We must examine this issue in the light of God’s word so that he can remove it from our lives and begin the healing.
Daily Directive:
Answer and Journal the Following
Read:
Read and meditate on 1 John 2:7-11.
Pray:
What sin in your life needs to be examined in the light? Be real; be honest.
Meditate / Make It Real:
Pray to ask God to bring out that hidden sin in your life so you may be forgiven. Then accept the forgiveness and ask God for restoration and protection. Be specific.
Share / Show:
Share this with a fellow brother and have them hold you accountable.