Dog Elbow

I figured it out! For several months I have been bothered by pain and weakness in my right arm. It seemed to be centered in my elbow and affected my ability to open the passenger door of a car, throw a ball for Katie, or pluck something down from an overhead shelf. I kept putting off going to a doctor because I have spent more than enough time this year in or under diagnostic equipment.

Last weekend we bought some saddle bags for Katie. Recently our vet suggested she could shed a few pounds and we knew Caesar Milan said dogs need to “work,” so after adding some hand weights to each bag, we strapped it on Katie, and off we went for a walk. It was a miracle! Katie was a perfect walking companion. She did not need to be told “heel” or “side.” She was there! Finally a human was the pack leader.

After several days of walking Katie with her saddle bags I began to notice that my arm was not sore! I could throw. I could open car doors. I could reach above my head. And then I realized I was recovering from “Dog Elbow.” Without being pulled by a strong dog for an hour or more a day, the muscles were returning to their normal. What a relief!

And then this morning Katie and I set out on a walk sans saddle bags. Oh my! It was back to “stop,” “back,” and “side.” It took much longer than I was growing accustomed to for us to cover even a few blocks. And then it dawned on me . . .

When it comes to my walk with God, how often am I just like a dog who is determined to be the pack leader? I am so confident that I know the best way to get where I want to go that I try to drag even God along with me. Ouch! My thoughts began to wander to times when God was trying to tell me “side.” And to what I know to be true – life is best lived with God in the lead. I am going to work to be a better follower. Will you join me?

Symbol or Decoration?

She was an attractive woman who appeared to be of retirement age.  Underneath her tailored fall jacket she wore a black tee shirt embossed with a stylized cross that appeared to be created out of rhinestones. I thought about a question Ruth Bell Graham asked a women she encountered once on the Great Wall of China; her cross necklace seemingly out of place. “Symbol or decoration?”

I knew the answer for the woman before me in the exceptionally long checkout line. Her name tag identified her as a volunteer. Along with a teacher and several other volunteers she was chaperoning a trip to Big Lots for a class of adolescent special needs students.

Her gentle voice, patience, and caring nature communicated to me that her cross was a symbol. She was living the Great Commandment.

I held the door for her to exit with one student holding her hand and two more next to her – one young man gently pushing the wheelchair of a classmate. I smiled and thanked her for what she does. She returned the smile, thanked me, and commented: “There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing!”

Loving your neighbor in action!