22 Wives, be subject to your own husbands, as to the Lord.Eph 5:22 (NASB)
Ok, humility really isn’t one of my downfalls. Sure, everyone is prideful and I am no exception. However, when I know I have acted out in a sinful way or I feel as though I am failing miserable as a wife, mother, pet-owner (rolling eyes), among many others, I am usually the first to admit it.
This post comes with great difficulty, however. I must say that to tell each of you about this is very humbling and very VERY embarrassing.
God has taught me in the past few weeks the value of submitting to my husband. I usually have no trouble trusting what he says is best for us. And so in the past I have never had to pay the price for any decisions that I have made because I have trusted my husband’s leadership. One Saturday afternoon, however, I flopped. Big time. And now I am paying for it.
I got a dog. We didn’t get a dog. I did. I had called David that afternoon and asked if we could have this precious puppy that no one else wanted. He said he would love to have a dog, but the timing was bad. We couldn’t afford a dog. We had no place to keep a dog. And he said he was looking in my best interest when he told me that he didn’t think I could handle a dog on top of my already-established, and much more important, responsibilities.
I was sad. I wanted a dog. Everyone was telling me that the boys needed a dog. So I got sneaky. The dog had been abandoned and she was very afraid. It was obvious: she needed love. I told the owners that we would take her home to play with her for a few hours and I would bring her back that night. Secretly, I knew it wouldn’t work that way. I knew when David saw the dog, he would want her. He’s a sucker for cute little puppies. I knew it and I played on it. I told him that I didn’t bring her home with the intention of keeping her, but I think deep inside I knew we wouldn’t take her back.
Reluctantly, David agreed to keep the dog, provided that we restructure the budget and it doesn’t keep him awake at night. Fair enough. He has to get up at 5:30 and work all day. At first we all had that initial “puppy love” deal going on. But as time has passed, I have learned David was right.
This dog is awful. I know she is just a puppy. But she howls all night. She pees and poops all over the house. They say a puppy won’t pee or poop where they sleep. Not Daisy. She does whatever she wants. Every morning I am stuck cleaning up more poop and pee than I ever have with my kids.
Let this be a lesson to all who read: God’s way is best! David knew I couldn’t handle that dog. I made a sinful decision and now I am reaping what I have sown. It stinks (pun intended). I want to give her away so bad but we all agree that we can’t bear taking her to the pound where she could possibly be euthanized. I suppose our best bet now is to try to make her an outdoor puppy. But that is difficult when she could easily be eaten. We’ll see.
My husband knows how repentant I am and this is a lesson that will stick. I am quite certain of it.
