How To Deal With Aliens

We noticed with some consternation that the house at the entrance of our neighborhood put up an electric fence for their new husky. I don't love electric fences, though we have one, but it is the double safe guard to our physical fence in trying to retain our escape artist dog. Huskies are known for their escape artist tendencies and I worried about the husky crashing the fence. I worried not only for his safety but for the safety of Asherel as she walks Honeybun. Honeybun does not love dogs racing up to her and while very nice if other dogs are polite, she will defend herself if she feels threatened. The husky was young, exuberant, and I felt certain would bound over to Honeybun if he escaped.

Anyway, a few days ago, I was near that husky house when another dog walker stopped me and warned me the husky had broken out of his fence and was loose. The owner caught him before I had to make a 3 mile detour in the other direction to get home. The next time I passed the husky, he looked at us but didn't go near the fence. I suspect he had gotten a strong shock when he escaped, and he seemed to not want to repeat that.


I thought about deterrents. I had just had my group of teens over for our DI practice. I love the group, but have found they need many reminders to stay on track. Is it better to do many little nagging reminders, that don't hurt much but seem more humane, or is one swift, mighty zap a better solution to correcting behavior? I thought about how God works. He uses both methods, I think, depending on the hardness of the misbehaving heart. But one of my favorite lines from Isaiah is when God says, "Come now, let us reason together."

He seems to want to approach us as reasonable equals, though clearly we are not. He seems to prefer the gentle guidance approach as opposed to the electrifying zap. Perhaps that is why it takes a lifetime to transform in His image. And in His infinite wisdom, He sent dogs to teach us how to slowly, but without letup, learn how to reason with alien life forms. And teenagers.

Isaiah 1:18
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.


Colossians 1:21-23 (NIV)
Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. [22] But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation--- [23] if you continue in your faith, established and firm, and do not move from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.



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