Who Leads You?

After blogging about dogs and the Top Dog Mentality, I am reminded of God and God's leadership. It is not true that when a dog loves you, he will automatically make you his leader. Neither do you become his leader just by loving him. Leadership within a pack (dog or otherwise) has to be established.

So also with God. Loving God is the first and chief commandment in the law - "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thine soul, and with all thine might." (Deuteronomy 6:5; Matthew 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27). God first loved, and in loving, He led. He became His people's leader, their provider, their protector. But, it was not enough for the people. They desired a king! They wanted someone who would win their wars for them - someone they could look up to and admire and love and respect. So God finally sent them a King - Jesus. He loved and taught and healed and led. But still the people would not follow Him. He was not the warrior king they had in mind. They could not love or respect Him ... so, they crucified Him. And in dying, He saved them ... and us.

God made us, loved us and respected us enough to give us something so precious even though He knew, it would turn us against our Maker. He gave Man a free will - He gave him a choice. For if Man would love Him with all their hearts and souls and might, they would obey Him and He would lead them to having peace and joy in their lives. " ... the fruit of the Spirit is: love, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, meekness, self-control; against such things there is no law." (Galatians 5:22)

God in His exactness, gave Moses the 10 Commandments and many other laws for the Israelites of old to follow so that they could be "sinless" and live in peace with much joy in the Promised Land. But they were not able to follow many of the given laws, so God sent Christ who taught us just two "laws" - to love God with all our heart, soul and might and our neighbours as ourselves. A man who lived his love right to death on the cross in obedience to His Father's plans - " ... that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us". (Romans 5:8)

We are like our pets (individuals). We live in a pack (family/community/society). We need leadership to have balance and harmony in our lives. So, let us ponder - WHO is our leader? In following do we love our leader with ALL our hearts, soul and might? And, in loving do we follow in obedience?

I have often wondered how it came to be that in the English language, God and dog are the same spelt backwards ... perhaps, like our pet dogs who love and respect us and who will follow our leadership obediently, we are meant be like so ... with God.

Who is my leader? God. Amen!