Ivy's Story

This is long overdue....

Abigail has always had a gift with animals. She is very nurturing and not afraid of them so anytime we would go somewhere with a pet of any sort, she would be drawn to them and animals are drawn to her as well. I had hoped that horseback riding lessons might satisfy her animal longings for awhile, and they did, but early in the summer, she began asking for a puppy. She brought it up at family meeting multiple times and we voted on it. Everyone was in favor of getting a dog, except Mike, who was concerned about the inconveniences of a dog (time, mess and money). 

Abigail kept working on her daddy (he didn't stand a chance) and we decided to get a family puppy for her birthday. I began doing research. We were interested in something mixed with a poodle so that we wouldn't have to deal with hair but Abigail didn't like how doodles of any kind looked and I didn't like the price tag so we began looking at shelters. I felt quite inept and overwhelmed with the process so I frequently asked for the Lord to give us the right dog for our family. We began praying for it as a family at meals and bedtime. I wanted God to give us a dog who was laid back and not really messy. Abigail had already decided that she wanted a girl puppy and that she wanted to name it "Ivy" so I kept looking at pictures of dogs and thinking, "Are you Ivy?"

I made many, many phone calls and finally made an appointment to go see a puppy at the Allen County Animal Shelter up in Lima. It was about the third week of school, piano lessons had just started, Abigail's birthday was looming and I didn't know what I was doing. I called Mike from the car on the way Lima, in tears, because I wasn't sure if I would know if it was a good dog and plus, the kids were with me so could I really walk away if it didn't work out? 

As I followed the directions, something started to feel familiar and I looked up and thought, "Wait a minute. I've been here before..." I've only been to Lima one other time and that was to visit a church there in 2002. And sure enough, there was the church right in front of me and you could throw a baseball from the church to the animal shelter. I felt like it was God telling me that this was going to work out.

We entered the shelter and asked to see a puppy named Tilly. The man at the desk agreed to go get her but informed me that there was already a hold on her. I told him that I knew that because I had called that morning and had them reserve her for me. He said that, no, he had put the hold on her about an hour before for a gentleman who was coming in from out of town. I informed him that I had called earlier than that and we had driven 45 minutes from Troy. I felt like saying, "You don't understand. GOD GAVE ME A SIGN!" We eventually  learned that there was another dog in the shelter by the name of Chili and that another worker had put our name on that dog. The gentleman at the desk tried to show me a picture of Chili but I wasn't having any of it. (Caleb later said, "Mom, that other dog was ugly...") Anyway, the guy is looking at me, almost crying,  and MY FOUR KIDS and probably thinking, "Jeesh!" He said he would call the other man and try to work something out. He explained that it had been an honest mistake and the other guy agreed to let us have the puppy if we wanted her. So, we held her and played with her, then she peed on the floor. We told the guy that we wanted her; I wrote a check for $40 and we left with a puppy and some paper work.

Ivy has turned out to be a dream of a dog. She is calm and obedient. She rarely barks, doesn't jump on people and was easy to house and crate train. I really LOVE this dog. So, here is the lesson: I felt helpless, we prayed fervently and God blessed us with a wonderful puppy. I am wondering how many times in my life I operate from a false sense of confidence, don't submit my needs to God and then have to settle for my best effort instead of God's best which is a million times better? What if I prayed for every outcome like I prayed for a "good dog"? Am I too busy with my own solution OR trying to be ok with any outcome instead of asking God for what I really desire?

Philippians 4:6, 7 (Amplified Version)

Do not fret or have any anxiety about anything, but in every circumstance and in everything, by prayer and petition (definite requests), with thanksgiving, continue to make your wants known to God.

And God's peace shall be yours, that tranquil state of a soul assured of its salvation through Christ, and so fearing nothing from God and being content with its earthly lot of whatever sort that is, that peace which transcends all understanding shall garrison and mount guard over your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.