I am teaching our four year old lab-mix to stay by my side when we go for a walk. I have asked myself many times why I didn’t do this when she was four months old rather than four years, but it is what it is.

Angel thinks deer are intruders that need to be driven from her presence. We have never let her chase them, but when she sees them, she rants and raves and carries on like crazy.

It is a rare day that we don’t see at least one deer on our walk, and every time we do, she lunges against the leash, panting to give chase. I am trying to teach her to observe them calmly. Right. She’s a Lab. But I digress.

This morning we had a smorgasbord of deer sightings. First we saw five white tail deer. I am thankful that I have always sighted them before she does, so I have always been prepared for her reaction. She continued to pull and lunge on the leash even after they were well out of sight. I sort of dragged her with me as we continued to walk, but she was trying her best to follow them.

As we rounded a corner, I spotted half a dozen mule deer in the road ahead of us. I said to her, “Angel girl, you’re so focused on what is gone that you’re going to miss the awesome thing just ahead.”

The Lord spoke to my heart and said, “Good advice, daughter. And it is straight from my heart.”

Don’t you just love those head slap moments with the Lord?

You see, we are trying to get our house sold, and although the buyer hasn’t been revealed to us yet, we know God has already appointed one for us. So we have been passively looking for a house in the Spokane Valley in order to be prepared when He brings the buyer. Problem with looking, even passively, is that you are inclined to find houses that you like. Really like. So far we have found two, both of which have been snapped up by others since we are not yet in a position to make a viable offer. The second house was even better than the first, and at the same price as the first. And even though we know that this is what may happen, and we think we are prepared, when it happens we are disappointed. The disappointment makes it difficult to keep looking.

The piece de resistance? At the point in our walk where we usually turn around and head back home, there is an old, long vacant, house above the road. As we approached it, we were treated to a veritable deer star-burst. They burst in all directions from behind that old house. It was so cool to watch them. There must have been at least a dozen of them. Okay, Angel still wanted to chase them, but she was a little better, a little calmer. We stood there and watched until the last one disappeared from view. Yep, I would not have wanted to miss it. And I can’t wait to see where God ultimately leads us. It will be His best for us, and it will be in complete alignment with His purposes for us.

Love walking with my Lord.

Phil 3:13-14 …forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ

© Sharon E. Coleman 2014