Energion.com Podcast

Transcript follows:

I’ve found that there are a number of things one can learn while walking a dog, especially my little dog Barnabas. Barnabas is a little Shih Tzu, and he’s getting past middle age for a dog, so he’s quite set in his ways. So here’s another “thought while walking my dog.”

Recently it has been quite hot here in the Pensacola area. I try to take Barnabas for his main walks early in the morning and after dark at night. Even so, it’s quite hot when we do our walk. To accommodate the poor little guy with the built-in fur coat, I slow things down somewhat. Occasionally he’ll stand there and pant, giving me the accusing look that says, “You don’t have this fur coat to deal with!”.

Now don’t think I’m cruel. I stop. I let him rest. He gets plenty of water. He clearly wants to go for his walk. He’ll get very annoyed if I try to take him home early. We just have to take it slowly. So I sweat and he pants, and we take much longer than usual for our little walk routine.

But I’ve noticed a funny thing. If I’m leading him along the way that I want to go, he’ll stop and pant. But if I let him take off the way he wants to go, such as into someone’s yard or down the middle of the street, suddenly his mouth snaps shut and he heads off at a trot as though he doesn’t have a problem in the world.

In my own life there are things that I need to do and things that I want to do. Very often these two sets don’t overlap all that much. It’s interesting that if I’m facing a day of cleaning in the house, I start feeling tired before I even start. Perhaps as a child you recall the rush of energy when you were headed to the playground for a couple of hours. You’d go there and wear yourself out with energetic playing. But if mom had asked you to clean your room, you would be way too tired to get the job done.

But don’t think it’s just a child’s thing. How many of us have energy for a round of golf, but not to clean off the back porch? How many of us can spend hours reading a novel that interests us, but find that our eyes are too tired to read that report we need to review at the office?

How many of us find the energy to spend time watching TV, but lack the energy to read our Bibles, pray, and spend time listening to the Lord? How many of us have the energy to discuss fishing, baseball, and even politics with our neighbor, but not to talk about what Jesus means in our lives?

Attitude is a large component of energy. That’s why we need to surrender our wills to God to bring our desires into line with our true needs.

Does God need to pull hard on your leash, or are you going along willingly?

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Scripture: Matthew 25:31-46.

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A transcript is available at Elgin Hushbeck’s blog.

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Scripture: Phil. 4:13, John 14

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A transcript is available on the Consider Christianity Blog.

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What can you learn from the experience of learning to survive in the wilderness that might apply to your spiritual life?

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A transcript is available at the Consider Christianity Blog.

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A transcript can be found on the Consider Christianity Blog.

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Elgin Hushbeck speaks on the way in which rituals and commemorations are important and how they are often devalued in our society.  Transcript available at the Consider Christianity Blog.

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A transcript is available on the Consider Christianity Blog.

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