I have been extremely busy lately and been unable to blog, but this in no way means that Carl has been hanging out and being a good boy. On the contrary, he has taken up a new antic of tearing up the screen on the back porch. What started as making a small hole here and there has turned into literally tearing the screen to shreds and leaving the lower side of the porch bare.
At this moment, Jay is hammering in a heavy wire so Carl cannot get his teeth on the screen. As Jay works, Carl and Bee are rough housing inside the porch and keeping a close eye on what is happening. You can see a bewildered expression on his face as the wired barrier goes up. His quiet demeanor seems to scream out, “Stop! I don’t want to be caged in!”
How often do we allow wired barriers to keep us from living life to the fullest? Personally, I sense the barriers being raised up as I fall into a comfortable routine. This leads me to an internal struggle when I leave this rut to venture out. When this happens I know I must look to the author of life for the answers.
In John 10:9-10 (CJB) Jesus tells us who he is. He states, “I am the gate; if someone enters through me, he will be safe and will go in and out and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only in order to steal, kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, life in its fullest measure.”
How cool is it to think that we don’t have to be restrained in this life by our wired barriers but we can freely find safe pastures through Jesus. He desires for us to have life in its fullest measure. Not half full, not even three quarters full, but life so full that it is pouring out.
This leads me back to Carl and the choices that he has been recently making. If only he could understand that tearing out screens will not give him freedom but quite the opposite. Hopefully, one day he will settle down and enjoy the life he has been given. But until then, the wired barrier will serve as a reminder to look to the one who calls us through the gate unto lush green pastures.
