Be On Guard!

The weather last Friday was absolutely beautiful. I had been looking forward to it all week. I had plans to take my dogs out on their favorite hike, after which we could sit at the lake, and I could write while they played. It was a good plan; unfortunately, things don't always work out the way we plan.

From the very start of the day, I sensed that something wasn't right, but I shook it off as paranoia. When I arrived and we began our hike, I felt out of sorts and not truly happy to be out. For whatever reason, my cell signal was acting crazy, making it impossible for me to do any of my work. Frustrated, I decided to finish the hike and just go home. I literally said the words, "Maybe God just doesn't want me to be here today."

As I walked, however, I noticed smoking rising from the area where they had just done a controlled burn. With the heavy winds, I feared something had ignited, so I decided to go back and check. Big mistake. I never made it to the area where I saw the smoke because as we came out of the woods, a furry blur sped past me and attacked my dog, Mitch. Before I realized what was happening, five or six dogs were on top of him, biting and pulling at him. I screamed at the dogs, hoping to scare them, but they continued. Their owner called to them calmly to stop. I directed my screams at her, "Get them off." In the meantime I was looking around for a branch to start swinging. Those of you who know me know that I would NEVER harm an animal, but when another animal is hurting my "baby," you better get out of the way.

My beagle, Tippy, concerned for her brother, raced into the fray. She took on one of the smaller dogs and was able to pull it away from Mitch. The other owner was finally making some effort to pull her dogs away, but they were intent on attacking. They pulled at him and bit him. He cried out of pain and fear. I was finally able to reach his collar and drag him away from the angry mob. He whimpered and shook as he tried to place himself between me and the dogs. It took every ounce of strength I had to remain upright and to drag both of my dogs in the direction of the woods from which we had just emerged. I knew I couldn't check their injuries or anything else until I got them away from the other dogs.

I won't go into the details from there for it would take far too long. I'll just say there were a lot of tears, and it took a good while before I was steady on my feet. Jason had to leave work to come get us because Mitch was in no shape to climb back up the mountain. I'm happy to say that despite some scratches and teeth marks, both of my dogs are okay. Mitch is limping due to some severe bites on his leg, but otherwise, we're all fine. . . more or less.

I can't tell you how many times I've replayed the scene in my mind. Even this morning, as I sat down to type out this post, all I could think about was the attack. But on the heels of that thought, I remembered I Peter 5:8: Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.

If nothing else, Friday's attack served as a reminder that Satan is looking to do that much and more to Christians. And because we have been warned, we need to be vigilant. I wasn't watching as carefully as I should have on Friday. I should have been aware of the other dogs. I can guarantee I'll be more careful in the future. Hopefully, I'll be more vigilant in watching out for the devil. What about you? Are you watching?