Reason #188
I had to give Scout a bath tonight. Now, I know what you're thinking. "Is she seriously going to blog about that dog again?" Yes, yes I am. Scout had an "accident" in her kennel today. I often feel bad for making her stay in a cage (although it is very roomy) when I'm gone, but when things like this happen, I'm very glad she doesn't have free roam around the house when I'm not home. So Scout smelled TERRIBLE! It was really bad. And I hated cleaning up her mess, but I had to do it. She wasn't capable of cleaning it up and it wasn't going to clean itself up. After scrubbing down her kennel and her bed, she was the next thing on the list. I haven't given her a bath in a long time. It's really not an enjoyable experience for either of us. I prefer to just pay someone else to do it, but tonight I didn't have the option. I shut us in the bathroom and began to run the bath water. Although she hasn't had a bath at the house in months, she remembered that sound and knew what was coming. I got the water just right and as I lowered her into the tub, her little claws started to stick out as if she was going to have to brace herself for the impact. I set her down and begin to pour the warm water over her. She wasn't very thrilled by this but stood there and took it like a champ. To be kind, I even avoided washing her face. Really, I was trying to get this bath over ASAP because I know how much she hates baths. I got her out and as I tried to dry her off with the towel, she kept running from me. So I chased her scrawny little body around the bathroom with the hair dryer. She whined and cried and scratched on the door just trying to get away from me. But I wasn't finished with her. This was the last step. I knew it was her least favorite step, but it wasn't hurting her. It was necessary, too. She would have been miserable running around soaking wet for hours, and I knew this. So, I finally got a good hold on her, pulled her into my lap, wet and whiney, and I finished drying her. She bolted out of the bathroom as soon as I opened the door and took a few angry laps around the bedroom as she expressed her frustration with me. I'm sure she was thinking, "Why did you just do that to me? Don't you know how much I hate that? What did I do to deserve that kind of treatment?" If only she knew how much better she smelled and looked. If only she knew how helpful and good that bath really was for her. So, being the loving mother I am, I got her a new chewstick to cheer her up. I just wanted her to know that I wasn't punishing her. Rather, I was taking good care of her because I love her and I just want what's best for her... even if she doesn't understand or like it.
I sat in my bedroom with my mom in the fall and I said, "Why me?" It didn't seem fair. I had done everything right, or at least I had tried to. Things like this didn't happen to girls like me. I didn't deserve this. It made no sense. I felt I hadn't done anything to warrant this situation, and I just couldn't wrap my mind around the fact that this was happening to me. I had been praying and praying a certain way but God wasn't doing what I wanted. He wasn't cleaning up this mess like I had asked. I had been trying and trying to clean it up myself, but I wasn't getting anywhere. Why was He allowing this to happen to me? Why wasn't He stopping this from happening to me? And my mom looked right at me and, in all her wisdom, she said, "Why not you?"
Why not me? Why do I deserve only the best? Why do I deserve only blessings and never trials? What have I done that has caused me to be exempt from any difficulty in life? Why should I have preferential treatment? Why me?
"The difficult circumstances of our lives aren't always caused by blatant sin. In fact, difficulties and hard times can be ordained by God. Sometimes He puts certain people through a crash course of faith using hard circumstances because He has great things for them to do based on the growth they gain from their trials...Our faithfulness isn't directly proportional to how easy our lives will be." (taken from Journey devotionals)
I read this today and it hit me like a ton of bricks. As I bathed Scout tonight, and as I cleaned up her mess, this was all I could think about. Scout caused the mess. Of course, it wasn't on purpose but it affected her none the less. I had to clean it up. I had no choice. Well, actually, I did have a choice. I could have just left it, stuck her back in there with it and dealt with it later. I could have ignored it and moved on to do something more enjoyable. But I love her and I realized she was totally incapable of fixing it. She was basically helpless, and the only way I could clean it up, the only way I could make things smell better, was to get down on my hands and knees and scrub the mess away. And the only way I could get her clean and back into a better state was to put her through an experience she didn't particularly enjoy. This was the only solution available. Although she didn't understand it, it really was the best option to fixing the situation at hand.
I did this. I was Scout. I did not understand why I was being drug through this experience. I ran in circles, I cried, I whined and I begged for it to be over. But here's the thing, I didn't know what was best for me. I didn't know how good the outcome was going to be for me in the long run. All I could think about how miserable I was at the time. I really thought my life was supposed to be easy. It had always been easy up until this point. I thought if I just asked and prayed and believed, surely it would continue to work out relatively easy. But it was hard. It was scary. It was far from fun. And truthfully, this was the first big mess I was ever affected by.
And so I'm thankful that my Heavenly Father scooped down and took care of the mess. In fact, He got right into the middle of it and He began to clean it up. He knew that I was completely incapable of taking care of it, and I don't believe that He expected me to, either. He took those nail pierced hands and He scrubbed and scrubbed until that mess was gone. It wasn't fun for me and I doubt He had a blast doing it, either. But it had to be done, and He was the only one capable of such a job. He had choices. He could have left me in that mess. He could have let me run around confused and scared. He could have ignored me and done something else, something more fun. He could have given in to my incessant crying and just let me go on my own. But He didn't. He wasn't through with me. And trust me, I ran in angry circles and expressed my frustrations many nights. I let Him know I wasn't happy. But you know what He did? He poured out His joy and peace over me to remind that He was doing this because He loved me, not because He was punishing me. He was doing this because He knew it was the best option. And although I thought it would never be over, although it seemed to drag on and on, I see that He really was working quickly to get me through it ASAP. He was completely aware that I wasn't enjoying it, and He didn't intend on keeping me there for a moment longer than necessary.
So I praise Him for cleaning up the messes. For putting me through experiences, even if they aren't fun or enjoyable, so that He can prepare me for better things to come. And I praise Him for always doing what's best for me rather than what's easy. Because as I've well come to see, when He doesn't let us off easy, it really is for the best.
#188 - Because He cleans up our messes for the best!
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” - John 16:33
I sat in my bedroom with my mom in the fall and I said, "Why me?" It didn't seem fair. I had done everything right, or at least I had tried to. Things like this didn't happen to girls like me. I didn't deserve this. It made no sense. I felt I hadn't done anything to warrant this situation, and I just couldn't wrap my mind around the fact that this was happening to me. I had been praying and praying a certain way but God wasn't doing what I wanted. He wasn't cleaning up this mess like I had asked. I had been trying and trying to clean it up myself, but I wasn't getting anywhere. Why was He allowing this to happen to me? Why wasn't He stopping this from happening to me? And my mom looked right at me and, in all her wisdom, she said, "Why not you?"
Why not me? Why do I deserve only the best? Why do I deserve only blessings and never trials? What have I done that has caused me to be exempt from any difficulty in life? Why should I have preferential treatment? Why me?
"The difficult circumstances of our lives aren't always caused by blatant sin. In fact, difficulties and hard times can be ordained by God. Sometimes He puts certain people through a crash course of faith using hard circumstances because He has great things for them to do based on the growth they gain from their trials...Our faithfulness isn't directly proportional to how easy our lives will be." (taken from Journey devotionals)
I read this today and it hit me like a ton of bricks. As I bathed Scout tonight, and as I cleaned up her mess, this was all I could think about. Scout caused the mess. Of course, it wasn't on purpose but it affected her none the less. I had to clean it up. I had no choice. Well, actually, I did have a choice. I could have just left it, stuck her back in there with it and dealt with it later. I could have ignored it and moved on to do something more enjoyable. But I love her and I realized she was totally incapable of fixing it. She was basically helpless, and the only way I could clean it up, the only way I could make things smell better, was to get down on my hands and knees and scrub the mess away. And the only way I could get her clean and back into a better state was to put her through an experience she didn't particularly enjoy. This was the only solution available. Although she didn't understand it, it really was the best option to fixing the situation at hand.
I did this. I was Scout. I did not understand why I was being drug through this experience. I ran in circles, I cried, I whined and I begged for it to be over. But here's the thing, I didn't know what was best for me. I didn't know how good the outcome was going to be for me in the long run. All I could think about how miserable I was at the time. I really thought my life was supposed to be easy. It had always been easy up until this point. I thought if I just asked and prayed and believed, surely it would continue to work out relatively easy. But it was hard. It was scary. It was far from fun. And truthfully, this was the first big mess I was ever affected by.
And so I'm thankful that my Heavenly Father scooped down and took care of the mess. In fact, He got right into the middle of it and He began to clean it up. He knew that I was completely incapable of taking care of it, and I don't believe that He expected me to, either. He took those nail pierced hands and He scrubbed and scrubbed until that mess was gone. It wasn't fun for me and I doubt He had a blast doing it, either. But it had to be done, and He was the only one capable of such a job. He had choices. He could have left me in that mess. He could have let me run around confused and scared. He could have ignored me and done something else, something more fun. He could have given in to my incessant crying and just let me go on my own. But He didn't. He wasn't through with me. And trust me, I ran in angry circles and expressed my frustrations many nights. I let Him know I wasn't happy. But you know what He did? He poured out His joy and peace over me to remind that He was doing this because He loved me, not because He was punishing me. He was doing this because He knew it was the best option. And although I thought it would never be over, although it seemed to drag on and on, I see that He really was working quickly to get me through it ASAP. He was completely aware that I wasn't enjoying it, and He didn't intend on keeping me there for a moment longer than necessary.
So I praise Him for cleaning up the messes. For putting me through experiences, even if they aren't fun or enjoyable, so that He can prepare me for better things to come. And I praise Him for always doing what's best for me rather than what's easy. Because as I've well come to see, when He doesn't let us off easy, it really is for the best.
#188 - Because He cleans up our messes for the best!
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” - John 16:33