Who Let the Dogs Out?

Some women believe the notion that "all men are dogs."  Those who believe the statement is true either believe it because they accept what they have been taught to believe about men, or have come to that conclusion based on their own bad experiences.

Although I have had my share of bad experiences, I am glad to say that I know that all men are not dogs.  However, there certainly are those who are guilty of treating others like dogs.  In such cases, the question that comes to my mind is, how did these individuals come to behave that way?  Or, in other words, "Who let the dogs out?"

My contention is that we are not born treating others as less than human, but somewhere along the way, some of us receive the wrong training, sometimes from the very people that wind up being mistreated.

Women, some of us fall right into the trap of raising our daughters and spoiling our sons, sending the wrong message to both of them.  As a result, some girls grow up thinking that women are supposed to shoulder all of the responsibility for caring for the family and the boys grow up thinking it's alright for a man to be passive or detached. 

Many of our sons are hurt by not having a father around, but also when they don't have a solid example from their mothers about how a real man is expected to treat a woman.  If they see a string of men in and out of their mothers' lives, it's no surprise that they end up in and out of other women's lives.  How will they ever build the stamina to stay true to anyone if they've never seen it demonstrated or specifically taught?

God tells us that "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord."  We need to be teaching our children that truth -- our sons as well as our daughters. Some of the drama that people experience in relationships comes from the fact that too many boys grow up thinking only about being boyfriends, not husbands, and girls grow up not preparing to be a wife, but preparing to settle for boyfriends instead of holding out for husbands. 

A boy-friend is not necessarily looking for a wife, but is often seeking a play-mate--because that's what boys do, they play. Only a man that knows he is a husband will search for a wife, and when he seeks he will find his "good thing."  When women allow themselves to be play-mates, men are taught to believe that it's alright to be play-ers.

When we dress deliberately provacatively and send the message that our best assets are...well...our "assets," we should not be offended when the men come looking for the advertised special and show no interest or respect for our heart or mind.  Ladies, if we really want to help control the pet population, we just need to put away the dog whistles and they'll stop coming our way!

A Godly man that is searching for a Godly help-mate will look for her in certain places.  That means that a Godly woman needs to be in the right place to be found.  If we don't want the dogs pawing at our "kibbles and bits", we would do best to stay away from the dog food aisle.  If we don't want to be played, we should stay as far away as possible from the aisles filled with toys and games.

We also need to hold out for a man to seek our hand from our heavenly Father. That can only happen if the man has his own relationship with God, which is a must if he is to serve as the covering God expects him to be.

Six years ago on June 25, I was blessed of the Lord to be united in holy matrimony to Kendrick E. Curry, a man of God who knew I was his "good thing" not based on what he saw with his physical eyes, but because of what God revealed to his spiritual eyes. 

I am so thankful that we decided to stop leaning on our own understanding and instead trusted God to bring us together, for truly "His ways are not our ways."  Without the power and presence of the Lord in our lives, we could have easily gotten all turned around and let the dogs out instead of letting God in. 

If you are single and desiring a mate, don't be discouraged by the dog days of summer.  God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.  So, keep your eyes on Jesus, continue to wait on the Lord and...

BNcouraged!

Rev. Karen