Acceptance of Truth
We have a new puppy and the truth is, at 8 weeks old, Skylar didn’t come housebroken or house trained. We started training her immediately and she’s doing pretty good, but we’ve had our accidents. It’s frustrating, but we carry on. I know from past experience with our other dog, Molly, that it takes awhile. From reading books, I learned that it takes time, patience, and lots of praise until they are at least 12-16 weeks old. So….what if I told myself a lie and and refused to believe she could be housebroken or house trained because of initial accidents? What if I rejected the truth of past history, knowledge I gleaned and let my emotions get out of control? What would happen if I refused to accept the hard work it takes to train a dog and to move forward after accidents because of these lies? Why would I tell myself lies anyway? Selfishness and laziness! Truth would mean hard work and acceptance that “we’re not there yet, and it’s going to take a long time”. Without truth and acceptance, regarding Skylar, our fmaily would never reap the benefit of this very smart, precious, animal becoming an indoor member of our family who will bring us much joy in the future!
What is truth anyway? Truth is is what all things are measured by. An example of this is a pound. You measure pounds with a scale. The truth about Skylar is she’s a baby, who doesn’t know anything about living in a house. The ultimate truth for all human behavior is Jesus Christ who manifested Himself through the infinite Word of God, The Bible. He deemed what is good and what is evil, what is right and what is wrong. We can argue all day about it and believe lies, but it’s only when we accept His truth, as our creator, that we can move forward in life, through all of its’ struggles.
John 14:6 – And Jesus said, I am the way, the truth and the life. No man comes to the Father except through me. 2 Timothy 3:15-16 – ..and that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.
What is acceptance? I define acceptance as “face the music that’s playing in your ear”. To accept a problem such as chronic illness or a bad relationship is to say, “I have been given something I don’t want or like, but it’s mine to carry well!” To do this, I must dwell in the truth of the Word of God to remind me that this is a fallen world, that I will have to work hard and probably suffer in some form or fashion while I’m here, but I can and will have an abundant life through Jesus Christ regardless of the circumstances. Many accounts of historical events in the Bible are about people who go through trials, accept them, and then go on to do amazing things. I like the one about Joseph. Abused and sold into slavery by his brothers, Joseph accepted his trial and still obeyed God’s truth. In the end he was rewarded with a position as governor over Egypt and helped save many people from famine. (Genesis 37 – 50) Unfortunately, we also read about those who never accept God’s truth and suffer the consequences for it, like Lot and his wife, who were told not to look back on Sodom. His wife did it anyway, and when she did, she turned into a pillar of salt. (Genesis 19:1-26)
As I write this, my eyes are heavy because Skylar woke me up at 5:45 a.m. and didn’t go back to sleep! She’s now sitting under my feet, chewing on the chair, so I must go, lovingly discipline her, tell myself “this too shall pass,” keep up the good work, and when she lays down her little head, I will take a nap!!!
