David Duncan
on November 4, 2024

Dog Gone It!

Yet sometimes, no matter how hard we try, IT still happens.

Devotion 2024 Nov

6 min read

Dog Gone It!

We have a dog in our neighborhood that’s a fence jumper. Every so often, even with the gate shut, he magically appears in the backyard. He’s friendly enough, but we worry what might happen if he gets in when our little dog is out.

We thought we had the problem solved. Our super-athletic trespasser liked to jump the one section of our fence that was four feet tall, so we replaced it with a six foot wooden privacy fence. We now have a tall fence around our whole backyard. “That should do it,” I told my wife.

But wouldn’t you know, one day we looked out and there he was– standing on the back patio laughing at himself in the window. What kind of dog gets over a six foot privacy fence?!

This has to be yet another metaphor for life. We build fences around our circumstances to control them. And then, when something breaches our puny perimeter, we build better ones.

Yet sometimes, no matter how hard we try, IT still happens. They make LifeProof cases for phones, but not for the human condition. And when something jumps the ‘fence’ and comes to the window, it’s easy to feel violated, unsafe and unsure about the future.

Enter God, the creator and sustainer of the universe, who most certainly understands humans. 

He became one.

And, as it turns out, He’s a fence builder too.

You hem me in–behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.

Psalm 139:5 (NIV)

King David doesn’t mention sideways, but surely the Almighty has that covered as well.

So friend, can we agree that whatever we’re facing right now—be it good, bad or ugly—God saw it coming and knows what to do about it?

His Word is His bond.

 

David Duncan is an ordained Southern Baptist minister turned elementary school administrator. He and his wife have three grown sons, but no grandchildren. They live in the Midwestern United States, with their Schnauzer, Cooper. David blogs at davidsdailydose.org, where he shares positive thoughts from a Christian perspective.

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