Awww!  Isn't she cute?  Yes, true, she's adorable.  This is Dixie, the Schnauzer/Poodle mix, or Schnoodle.  She's also known as 'Ditzy' because she's a little...ditzy... sometimes.  We're talking walk-into-walls, forget-where-you're-going, sometimes-caught-staring-into-space type of adorableness. 

And this is Buddy.
He is also known as 'The Best Male Dog Ever' in our house, the wonderful Beagle/Jack Russell mix - Jackabee - that has found his forever home here.  We once thought that if these two had puppies, the result would be called Schnackaboodles, but that's a different story.  By the way, they aren't being bred, it was a funny story because of the puppy names, that's all...so put your torches and pitchforks down.  *grin*

So, this last weekend the boys in the family all went to a Men and Boy's Campout with our church.  The boys in our family consist of my husband Rich, and our two sons, James and John.  James is 15 years old, John is 9 years old - and a bundle of nearly unstoppable energy. 

 Well my husband was having to keep a close eye on John for those three days in the mountains.  After all, there's bears in them there hills - seriously, real bears.  Not the fluffy teddy bear kind, the big-clawed, don't-feed-the-bears kind.  

Mostly everyone stayed together, but at some point John was rarin' to take off, and my husband turned to him and said, "Where are you going, son?"

John turned to his father, and said, "It's ok, Dad.  I'm nine years old now.  I'll be fine."

It was funny, really, how my husband is so much bigger than him, and knows the dangers waiting in the woods far better than our son does, and can keep my son safe.  Yet in John's nine year old brain, he was grown up and fully capable of taking care of himself.

As I thought about this, I realized something.  Don't we do that with God?  We look at God and say, "It's ok, Father.  I've been saved (however long).  I've got this.  I'm fine.  I can take care of myself now."

You know, in the Christian life we're supposed to mature, yes.  But we never will get to the point where we're as grown up as God is.  Sure, John is more mature than he was as a one year old, but he isn't grown fully, and he can't meet the challenges we know he'll face if he goes off on his own.

God knows that about me too.  I can't go off on my own, expecting to be able to meet and conquer the challenges I'll face, without having God's help.

While someday, Lord willing, John will grow to be a 40 year old man, and be as mature as my husband is now.  But as a Christian, I will never accomplish the feat of being as 'mature' as God - none of us will.  We never grow to the point where we don't need God's help any longer.

Today, let's let God be in charge.