Last night was a sight to behold.  Two wills battling it out to see who would win.  No, it wasn’t on Television.  No, it wasn’t a fight between Nadine and myself.  No, it wasn’t an argument with one of my children.  No, it wasn’t a counseling appointment with a couple I was counseling.

It happened after we drove home and decided to have tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches (both were very delicious I might add).  This battle of wills happened after supper and after we both took off our work clothes and settled in for a night of watching our favorite show, The Blacklist.

Monty, our Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, became hungry and showed his need to Nadine for food.  She obliged by going into the laundry room where his food and water dish are set up.  She prepared his food with bits of treats, his regular dog food, and water to soften the crunchy dog food he normally gets.  She put it down and left the laundry room to come into the family room and sit on the couch.   He quickly gobbled up the dog treats, pushing his regular dog food to the side and leaving the less tasty food for the wonderful dog treats.

As we were sitting on the couch, we began to hear a cry in the laundry room and looked to see him sitting about 4 feet from the uneaten food crying for more dog treats.

Nadine didn’t respond, and the cries got louder as well as grunts.  She finally went in and said,  “Eat your food!.  Eat your Food!.  Monty just sat there, looked at her, backed away from the dish, and didn’t make a move to eat his food.  Nadine got more determined and pointed to his food and said, “Eat your food!!!  Eat your food!!!  He looked at her as if to say, “You can lead me to my food, but you can’t make me eat it.”

She left the room and heard the cries and grunts begin to increase with barks mixed in (in the laundry room).  After 10 minutes, she decided to go back in the room with none of the left over food being eaten and said, “Monty, eat your food!!!!!  Monty, eat your food!!!!!”  Monty just looked at her and she looked at him and neither budged from their spots.  No food was eaten.  The strong will standoff ended in a draw.  This morning, we went into the laundry room and the uneaten food was still there.  Strong wills to say the least.

It reminds me sometimes of my relationship with God.  He is giving me what I need on a daily basis and I sometimes push it off to the side, wanting something more that I think will fulfill my needs.  A job.  A car.  A new TV for Super Bowl.  A new relationship.  Different living situation.  More salary.  Healthier me.  Different food.  How many times are we dissatisfied with the things we have and want something different like Monty.  The Master has given us our needs and yet we reject the needs by focusing on our wants.  There is a biblical truth in Exodus where God brought the nation of Israel out of Egypt.  He provided for their needs and yet they balked at them and wanted something more.

On this journey thru life, there will always be the tendency to want something more, rather than thanking God for what He has given us.  Today is a great day to develop the skills of being thankful for what you have.