Sit AND Hold It

Be careful to obey all these commands I am giving you. Show love to the LORD your God by walking in his ways and holding tightly to him. (Deuteronomy  11:22)

I have a wonderful dog, Bo. He is considered a large breed weighing over 80 pounds. Bo loves to take walks. We live in an area that requires all animals be on a leash. When Bo hears his leash, he gets so excited, spins in circles, and has difficulty sitting down and holding that position in order for me to put the leash on him. 

While he is in a tail spin, he isn't listening so I refuse to wrestle with him. I could grab his neck, swing the leash on him (after several attempts) and that process would work but it would only serve to wear me out and hype him up further. Been there. Done that. It's almost like roping a calf. When he came to live with us, he had been wonderfully trained so he knows the commands. In his frenzied state, he doesn't always want to adhere to the commands.


When I have a treat in my hand, he will hold it (His sitting position.) for as long as I stand there so I know he has the ability to sit and hold it. 

Instead of wrestling his leash on him, I use a different approach. I pick up the leash. He turns in circles. I say, "sit and hold it". His bottom hits the floor for .2 seconds and he is up spinning in circles again. I say, "sit and hold it". He sits again for a few seconds, whines, stretches, and starts spinning again. 

After several verbal commands, I give him the hand signal (American Sign Language) for sit and hold it. Now he knows I'm serious because I've stopped talking. I will not take him on his walk until he follows through with the commands. I refuse to confuse him with a different approach daily. I hold to original training because consistency is critical as to not confuse him. Finally, he decides to sit and hold it, patiently, while I calmly place the leash on him. I can't do anything productive with him as long as he is spinning around in a frenzy. 

Currently, in our world, we are seeing things happen that has never been seen before and oftentimes our flesh wants to throw us into a tail spin. It is more important now than ever to be still, walk in His ways and hold tightly to Him. We must refuse the tailspin!

Consider this, just as I refuse to wrestle with Bo as long as he is in a tailspin, could it be the LORD waits for us to sit AND hold it?