WE ARE NOT RABID DOGS
We’ve all made the mistake of thinking we could go back to
an old job, an old relationship, a place we once lived, and think it will be
better the second time around. Let me give you an example, and then let’s see
what the Lord has to say about such situations.
Jane met a young girl at work whose boyfriend beat her. One
day she showed up at work so scraped up she couldn’t move her fingers. He’d
thrown her out of a moving car. Jane called a battered women’s shelter. The
counselor on the phone stopped the conversation and started counseling Jane.
She told her she shouldn’t even get involved at this point because the average
battered woman leaves 7 times before she leaves for good. The counselor told
Jane it was classic for a third party to get involved to try to help, and all
that happens is that they get in the middle of the couple, and the woman
defends the abuser. The counselor said getting involved never does any good
until the woman seeks help for herself.
God talks about this kind of thing in Proverbs 26:11-12:
“As a dog returneth to his vomit, so a fool returneth to his folly.” I looked
up the expression about a dog returning to its own vomit and found that the
Bible is talking about rabid dogs. In the East, troops of fierce half-famished
dogs without masters are often wandering around the towns and villages.
They eat anything they can find. Anyone who has cats and
dogs for pets knows that the silly dog will find great treasures in the cat
box, as disgusting as that is! Dogs will eat poop. There, I said it. A dog will
eat its own vomit if it’s hungry enough, as these rabid dogs do. There are
other references to dogs in the Bible as well. These talk about the packs of
dogs eating a dead person. Disgusting but true.
2 Kings 9:10: “And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the
portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her.”
1 Kings 14:11: “Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city
shall the dogs eat.”
1 Kings 16:4: “Him that dieth of Baasha in the city shall
the dogs eat.”
The Lord uses these examples to make a point: The people
who stayed in a bad place for them, didn’t even get a proper burial, but were
eaten by rabid dogs. That’s sad.
Don’t be enticed into going back into a situation that has
hurt you before. We need to get honest with ourselves and ask ourselves why we
want to go back. Is it really the Lord’s will? Have we taken the time to have a
conversation with the Lord and ask Him? Or, are we being manipulated or enticed
by lies or maybe being bewitched by a memory? Think about it: The food the dog
ate was fresh at first. But it’s no longer fresh when it comes out – it’s
waste. It’s dead and deadly. Toxic! It’s not what it used to be! And yet, the
dog goes back and eats it!
Wild, rabid dogs will eat their own vomit and will eat what
is dead. We don’t have to do that. We can be free.
Admitting we have to leave or can’t go back to a person,
place, or situation isn’t failure; it’s deliverance!
Proverbs 3:6 tells us: “In all thy ways acknowledge Him,
and he shall direct thy paths” (Prov. 3:6).
God’s will is that we are blessed, not stressed. That’s why
He warns us about not being tricked into going back to things that are done or
decaying, but instead reach out to Him because He will gladly direct us into
His ways The Lord’s ways will make us strong, not stressed.
“For by thee I have run through a troop; and by my God have
I leaped over a wall” (Ps. 18:29).
“They that wait [rely] upon the Lord shall
renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles” (Isa.
40:31a).
Love, Carolyn
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