Speaking their Language

One of the most frustrating things about dog ownership is the language barrier between us and the dogs! You can teach them a few words and commands to go with those words, but that's about all they will get, no matter how smart your dog is. For some reason, I keep trying to teach my dogs how to act by talking to them like people. You'd think I would have learned by now not to talk to them like people, but I'm so used to speaking my own language, I often forget to speak their language. I'm not talking about barking at them. That would be hilarious to watch, but ultimately completely ineffective. Dogs live in a pack order, and the whole pack follows the leader. In the wild, the pack leader will bite at the neck of an insubordinate dog to remind him who is the leader. So, when we need to correct the dogs, we use our hands to "bite" them at the neck, telling them to back off and respect our leadership. They are not capable of understanding our way of communicating, so we must communicate with them in a way they can understand.

We have a language barrier with God too. On our own, we are completely unable to understand His ways, His voice, & His words. Yet He has chosen to reveal Himself and His truth to us in a way we can understand. He gave us the Bible, His truth in words we can understand. But even in that, He must enable us to understand it. He also speaks to our hearts individually in very personal ways. We often miss it because we aren't listening, but if you do, you will hear His words. I remember very clearly the first time God spoke to me in this way. I was at a crossroads in my faith as an 8th grader. I had accepted Jesus' sacrifice for my sins, but I was still living my life my own way. One day at a youth camp, God said to me in my heart, "Are you with me or not?" When I answered, "Yes," my life was never the same.

How very gracious is our God, who loves us so much and wants us to know Him, so He communicates that to us in very clear and personal ways. For those of us who already know of this amazing love, how important it is for us to tell those who don't yet know- in a way they can understand.