Good morning…
Just like our four young adult kids, our two dogs are so so different. Being sequestered with Tate and Gracie for an undisturbed week of writing at the beach, I can’t help but notice how differently our dogs respond to the grey cold of winter.
Tate, our furry-coated golden retriever mix, spends hours and hours outside in the chilly weather. Perched on delighted alert, she loves picking up any movement, noticing every creature walking by, and soaking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the outside world.
Gracie, on the other hand, is our little yorkie-shitzu rescue. She prefers the warmth of staying inside, curling up in her own quiet corner, nestling into the cozy comfort of soft familiar scents. My thoughts deepen as I observe our dogs.
Because it goes against her God-given wiring, I could not make Gracie stay out in the harsh cold for hours on end. Forced to stay outside, our skinny thirteen pounder would be in misery. At the same time, I could not make Tate contort herself into my carry-on bag, staying curled up in a corner while the adventure of the outside world calls to her spirit. When the temperatures drop down, Tate is instinctively wired to “get out in it.” It is impossible to miss the God-designed differences in our dogs, right? Why do we sometime struggle against how God has naturally wired us or forget to understand how differently God has wired the people around us?
We people are one-of-a-kind, God-made creatures too, wired with different temperaments, different natural tendencies, different ways of responding to the grey, harsh temperatures running rampant in our world this winter. How do you sense yourself responding to the biting cold? Are you more like Tate? Getting out into the wildness, alertly watching every movement closely, experiencing fully every ounce of this unprecedented time. Or are you more like Gracie? Snuggling into the safety of your comfort zone, weathering the harshness in your own cozy corner, drawing inward for the wonder of warmth.
Now we burrow down into some deeper discussion. How well are you able to embrace with grace all of God’s people who are responding very differently to the extremes of this season? Towards whom is it hardest for you to extend God’s grace?
Think with me, why might that be?
Noticing the unique wiring of our two dogs helps me to understand more deeply why some people feel drawn to be “out in the elements,” to fight boldly for justice, to make their loud voice heard, from both sides of the aisle, while other people are wired to weather the extremes by contemplatively curled up with God in the privacy of a prayer corner, listening, learning, leading from a quieter place of centered peace. I suspect there are many of us who are wired by God to “go out in it a bit,” to “draw inside a bit,” then to “go back out in it,” equipped to share the single voice which is uniquely ours to share.
We, each one of us, are designed to be light-bearers in this darkened world, yet we are all wired to spread God’s light so so differently. You groped your way through that murk once, but no longer. You’re out in the open now. The bright light of Christ makes your way plain. So no more stumbling around. Get on with it! The good, the right, the true—these are the actions appropriate for daylight hours. Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it (Ephesians 5:8-10, MSG).
One final question. Innately, instinctively how is God asking you to shine the Lord’s healing light in our wounding world on this winter day?
…Sue…
