When the Ordinary is Extraordinary

This week while I was taking a walk with my two grand-pups, I had an extraordinary moment that is worth sharing.

It was a cold New England dusk, and I felt the chill on my face.

The dogs are St. Bernard’s, and they absolutely love this cold weather. They hide inside in the air conditioning in the summer, but in the winter, they prefer to be outside. One pup is very smart, named Molly, and the other one is Bailey, and we call her the “pretty one”.

The challenge when walking two 100-lb dogs together is …well, there are few inherent challenges…but the one I want to talk about is how the dogs get tangled up with the leash on EVERY walk.

Molly does a good job fixing herself. She adjusts her feet, moves her head around the leash when it’s not seated correctly. She problem solves well in almost any situation. Opens doors, finds crevices to sneak out of the fence to the yard. You know the kind.

Then there is Bailey. A super sweet dog, but not the sharpest knife in the draw. Her version of problem solving is laying down and waiting. Her sister does all the work, so she doesn’t have to. When it comes to leash manners, she has none. Bailey gets tangled up all the time and is completely unaware of where the leash is relative to her body, or maybe she is aware and doesn’t care. It’s one or the other.

Let me also say that taking a walk is the highlight of Bailey’s day. She is all business about her walks. She barks like a seal in excitement.

Once we hit the neighborhood, she has zeros cares while she sniffs the world around her. Then she races along at her speed dragging her sister at times, getting tangled up until I say “Bailey, Wait”.

She stops, I untangle her and off we go. She knows what I’m doing and she surrenders, lets me move her around, grab her feet, or whatever needs doing to fix the situation.

So back to the walk. This time Molly got tangled (due to Bailey zig zagging) and the leash wrapped tightly around her back left leg.

Molly started to get anxious and was hopping around acting like she had a broken leg (drama queen) and her behavior was making it hard to address the situation.

In that moment, hanging over Molly trying to fix her in the dark while at the same time struggling with me, I received a revelation. I heard God say to me:

“See, this is what happens when I’m trying to help you. You fight me. If you just stopped and surrendered, it would be done.”

Wow. They always come with such weight and clarity, yet gentle at the same time.

I contemplated God’s message for some time with thoughts like:

…Perhaps the simplicity of Bailey surrendering and allowing me to do what I need to brings a Grace that can’t exist in a struggle.

…In the same way that I fix tangles over and over is the same way God handles us. Ump-teen times a day/week/year. Mostly with love and compassion, and a dash of frustration. I know Bailey can’t help herself. I don’t typically get upset and I try to keep the leash in a position that won’t tangle, but it inevitably does. I imagine God must do that too.

…Sometimes I let Bailey walk tangled. Perhaps with us, God does the same and lets us remain tangled and we walk impaired for a time. Until we stop, surrender, and get His help to adjust.

…Just how often is God trying to help me and I’m busy in the struggle? How frequently do I make things harder for God to work? Many times, I’m afraid.

…Now that I’m more aware, will I be able to recognize these moments and surrender?

…Gee, God, I sure would love to hear something like “Juliann, Stop!” when I’m in one of those moments!

It reminded me of the passage in Scripture where Jacob struggles with God in Genesis 32:22-32.

²⁸ Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel,^[a] because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”

That may not be the best example, but the struggle is real. I’m grateful that I received His message. I’m sure I’ll keep drawing parallels over the coming weeks and months.

I look forward to our walks even though I am well aware there will be more leash “incidents”.

In the very same way, we can be assured that God loves us, even when we create chaos.

Next time we are in a struggle moment, may we remember to surrender to God so he can work in our lives:

“Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.”

‭‭Psalm 136:2

In recognition that we all suffer when remaining in the struggle, let’s pray:

Blessings all!