Proverbs 3:5–6 (ESV)
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

When you give it to God, He will bless it—and give you so much more.

“I think God wants you to have him.” I never thought such selfless words would ever come out of a teenager’s mouth. I believe this permission was inspired by the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, she was dead set on getting herself a dog. I had gotten her a husky, but I could tell things were not going well as soon as we brought him home.

You probably know already that huskies are not lap dogs. They love to run, explore, and are very curious, & stubborn. They will not just do what you want, even if you try to trick them with a treat. Twice in one week, the husky almost got hit by a car because my teen just let him out without putting him on a leash. I talked to my teen about the importance of putting him on the leash, because common sense says if my dog almost died then I would be more careful to ensure his safety. Sadly, by the end of the week, he was hit by a truck and died instantly. I felt the full responsibility of putting this life in her hands.

I never thought it would come to that conclusion, and I would not let it happen again. I asked for clarity why she let the dog out without ensuring his safety and her response was that she got distracted by the mail. There is missing information there and maybe she cannot adequately divulge her thought process. However, it didn’t matter because if you do not take care of what you have. Then, there are consequences and the consequences of not taking a dog’s safety more seriously. Resulting in death, then I could not trust her with another.

I remember vividly after visiting his lifeless body lying in my garage, heartbreak & tears washing over me. I returned to the house and was stunned to see both my teens sitting cheerfully looking at the Petland website looking at puppies. “Look at this one!” one said gleefully. I was filled with anger instantly and I walked right over to them and stated plain and simple, “You are not getting another dog.” I almost growled the words. The smiles dropped from their faces so fast, and a fight ensued within the household.

You see, Petland had made a deal that if your puppy dies for any reason, any reason at all. Your money spent on that puppy will be store credited and you can use it to buy another puppy. She knew this, so now I am confirming in my mind that she had allowed her pup to die because they did not get along well and she wanted a different one. Instead of allowing me to get her another one and giving him to someone else. He did not know the consequences of his actions by running in the street, but she did.

The car stopped to avoid hitting the husky, but the truck behind that car sped around, hitting him, and then continued to drive away. For that truck driver, if that had been a child, you would have been sought out and put in jail for murder… Because it was a dog, there was no investigation done by the police. Reckless driving is reckless driving… Just pray their feelings of impatience were rectified from that moment on because next time it might be a human being. Especially in a 30-mph neighborhood, how stupid people can be!

Now I am left with $1,800 in Petland credit and I don’t know how long that offer is available. Though, I know one thing: My teenager is going to learn her lesson about consequences. She asks me what am I going to do with the money? And I replied, I am not getting a thousand hamsters… I saw Ace in the window. A little 10-week-old husky with icy-blue eyes. I remembered how wonderful her husky was. He would always come up with a big smile and give me kisses. When we waited in the car together for the girls, he would crawl up on my shoulders and be the lookout.

I told her that I wanted to get the husky and this made her upset. All I could feel was anger at her for not regarding my warnings and her selfishness. At one point I came to a boiling point when she argued with me and yelled about how unfair it was. I told my 16-year-old, it was her fault for what happened. No sugar coating, your lack of protection for this dog that needed direction and training. You can’t let a husky out without some boundaries, like a leash preventing them from running into the street. They have no concept of the dangers like we do.

A child does not know these dangers. They will run right into a street without looking both ways just because their ball went that way. Once I told her that it was her fault, I wondered if I was being too harsh, but as she started screaming, “You can’t say that to me!” Somehow, I knew she needed to hear it. And then she needed to hear about forgiveness and learning from mistakes. About learning what needs to be done for it to never happen again! Yes, your actions, or lack of actions led to the death of your dog – your responsibility. I told you what would happen, and you did not take it seriously enough to take precautions. Parenting is tough, I tell you. It sucks to go through these things with your kids.

I was set on using the money for a dog for me, because it was there, and I knew I could not relent on giving her another dog. There was no lesson in that. There were no consequences if she got what she wanted in the end. If she had neglected to care for her child and it resulted in that child’s death… The consequences would be way more severe! I tell you, prison for the death of a human being! Learn now child from your selfish stupidity because when you become an adult and are responsible for another life. Well, you know what happens then… his death will not be in vain.

I went to Petland and said I wanted that 10-week-old puppy. He sat in the corner and howled a lonely howl all by himself, looking away from any passerby. The woman asked me if I wanted to see his face and I said yes. She knocked on the glass and interrupted his lonely song. To this, he whipped his head around and glared at us. I couldn’t help but giggle, it was so damn fierce and cute. She said, “I hope you like howling because that is all he has done since he has been here.” “I love it”, I replied. There was one problem, however. When we got Spencer, while I was filling out the financial documents. They had my teenager sign a document stating she was the owner of the dog, and I needed her signature to exchange ownership. I just knew that she was not going to do this, and it did not sit well with me to make her.

I went back to my car and sat there knowing that there was no way around this, and this meant I was not getting Ace. I prayed, “God, what do I do?” An unexpected response was given. I heard his question like a thought in my head, but in a male voice. “Why did you take the girls in?” Surprised by this, I scrambled for the answer. Why did I take these girls in? Too give them love, stability, teach them about God, and everything that God represented. This was the answer, and his response was, “Just let it go.” Meaning, on the whole I am in my right to get a dog, because it is my money, and it is her fault for what happened to Spencer. Just let it go… And in my soul, that is what happened. Like he gave me the power to do this, because what truly mattered was why I took those girls in. My perspective on what was important had changed. It was no longer about what would happen to $1,800. I said OKAY and gave praise to the Lord for his peace and love. I went back home and told my girl; “I will not get that husky or any dog until you are ready or until you leave my home.” Now it was her turn to be stunned and feel the shocking love through the darkness. “You would do that for me?” she asked in bewilderment. “Yes, yes I would”, I affirmed.

The next day, she reported that Ace was no longer on the website of Petland and that someone probably had gotten him. Maybe she was looking to see if I had gone back on my word, but I didn’t. I just said, okay, it didn’t bother me at all to hear this news. But 3 days later, interesting number choice of days. 3 days later, Ace was back on the website and she reported this to me. I was surprised that she was still looking, I had all but just gone back to my normal daily activities and left everything in the past. Then she said, “I think God wants you to have him.” I had to make sure what I was hearing wasn’t a fluke and that was truly how she felt. She did. So, I asked her to come with me to go get him. She learned that I needed her signature at the store when they handed her the paper. She asked if I knew about this, to which I replied, “yes, but I wasn’t going to make you sign.” She accepted this response and the fear that had hit me with her question in that moment, left me. I was afraid she was going to change her mind.

You see… I gave her the chance to make the right choice. I just didn’t know it at the time because I was so in a thicket of emotion. I had to give it to God and allow him to give me the best path to take, the clarity of what was most important. I would have never come to this conclusion on my own. So, if you think I deserve applause. I am telling you, being a servant of God makes you a better person. But it also comes with times that make us look bad until we learn to look up to God for the answers. That is why Christian’s look bad a lot. That’s why you may catch us on our bad days when our buttons are being pushed like you have never experienced. Satan likes to whisper all kinds of lies in our ears, I tell you! There is a battle of the mind and self-reflection is needed to show where our hearts are. Is it about being right? I would say no.

If you know us or have met us during our travels. Leave a picture and comment on when and where we met!! Learn in the next blog how and why Ace became my Service Dog. And also what services he provides! Til next time, God Bless!