Jill Roman Lord, inspired by her experience with her new puppy, has written a guest post for us today on the joys of learning obedience.

Joy in Obedience
By Jill Roman Lord

She runs, she jumps, she nips. She stands when I say “sit”, she jumps when I say “Down” and she runs away when I say “Come.” Yes, We have a new puppy named Poppie. We have a lot of training ahead and she has a lot of learning that must occur in order for us to build a solid relationship.

After a fruitless training session of struggling to get her to obey my commands, I began thinking that I am a lot like Poppie How often do I jump up to tend to chores, when God says, “Come sit with me awhile?” How often do I get distracted when God says, “Dig into My Word”?  How often do I find other things to do when God says, “Spend time with your children”?

I long for Poppie to know my voice and obey my commands so that we may fully enjoy each other’s company. In order for this to happen, we must spend time together to get to know each other and for trust to grow. She must learn that I will take care of her and guide her on the best path for her life.  I must train her so that I can trust her to obey my commands every time. When she obeys my commands, I’ll give her more freedom. If I know she’ll ring the bells by the door when she needs to go out, I’ll expand her territory outside of the kitchen. If I know she’ll come when she’s called I’ll let her off her leash to play fetch. Though Poppy doesn’t always know the reasons I give her commands, it is still her duty to perform them without balking. She must learn there is joy in obedience and pleasure in the master’s plan.

We are a lot like Poppy in our relationship with our Master. We must spend time with God to get to know Him. We must read His Word to learn His ways. As our relationship deepens, our trust will grow. We learn to trust that He wants the best for us and will guide us on the right path. When we obey, He opens more doors for us, expanding our territory. As parents or grandparents, we trust that He has called us to not only love our children but teach them to know and love the One True Master so they may obey His plan for their lives, as well.

When we spend time reading God’s Word with our children, they too will understand Who He is. When we pray with and for our children they learn to pray on their own. If we spend time in the Word ourselves, our children will see that it is important to us. It is important that we act on and obey what we feel God is leading us to do, so our children will observe our obedience. Sometimes we don’t understand God’s direction, His timing, or His plan, but we must strive to do what we know we’ve been commanded to do. When we obey, we see the fruits of our obedience – the fruits of seeing our children love and obey God’s commands. Together we will discover the joy in obedience and the pleasure in the Master’s Plan.

Jill Roman Lord is an author of ten children’s books, a free-lance writer and a nurse anesthetist. Her latest book, One Night in Bethlehem was just released for Christmas 2011! She also has a series of three books published by Candy Cane Press, If Jesus Came to Visit Me, If Jesus Walked Beside Me, and If Jesus Lived Inside My Heart. These three books are available in both board books and hard cover. She has three children, one in college, one in high school and one in middle school. She lives in Charlotte, NC with her husband, her two children still at home and her Golden Retriever Puppy, Poppie. http://www.jillromanlord.com/