Puppies in Wolves Clothing

I heard this great story the other day that I think was originally told by LBJ.

A little boy ran into his house yelling and screaming that there was a wolf in the front yard. His mother, knowing there were no wolves in the area, ran out to look and saw the neighbor’s dog in the yard.
Anxious to get back to her chores, she punished her son for telling lies. “You know that is the neighbor’s dog and not a wolf. You shouldn’t run in here screaming, scaring everyone like that. I want you to go up to your room and pray about what you did.”
Awhile later, she went up to the boy’s room.
“So did you pray?” The boy nodded. “And what did God tell you?”
“He thought it was a wolf too!!!”

I love this story because it’s all about perspective. We all have our own perspectives – some we have held our whole lives through. Some are shifted dramatically by events in our lives, or people and conversations, or explorations of ourselves.

I think that challenging our perspectives and trying on some other ones, just to gain a broader view on something, is a great exercise. Sometimes it brings me back to my original view with a stronger conviction, and other times it brings me to a whole new place. Right now, I’m taking a hard look at some behaviors of mine that have been habits that I thought I needed. Habits that covered my lack of self-esteem or gave me the ability to put something between myself and something else. And you know what? Its super-liberating, and really enlightening.

I thought some things were wolves, but they turned out to be puppies. And that is a good thing.