A night of fireworks followed by a morning filled with thunderstorms is a horrible combination for an anxious dog. Let’s just say sleep was sought after but never fully achieved.

As you know by now, Barnabas is not your typical dog. He has. . .well, how shall I put it. . . issues. We have no idea what our poor pup endured for the first couple of years of his life, but whatever it was, it left him untrusting of anything he doesn’t understand. And where many dogs cower or hide when confronted with an unknown enemy, Barnabas’ reaction is to fight back. But how do you fight what you cannot see (like the cracking fireworks or booming thunder)? Unfortunately, Barnabas is still trying to figure that out, so for now, he barks. . . a lot. Every squeal. Every crash. Every boom. Bark, bark, bark!

It didn’t take us long to realize that comforting and coddling him did not help the situation. If anything, it seemed to make it worse. So, we opted for correction. With every bark, he received a tap on his training collar and a firm, “No!” Our goal was to teach the frenzied canine that there was nothing to fear and his reaction was not acceptable. In a sense, we were showing him that even though he couldn’t trust the unseen and unknown, he could trust us, and if we weren’t afraid, he didn’t need to be either. This approach worked much better than consoling him, but I can’t say he’s a quick learner when it comes to such things.

But, then again, I can’t say I am either. How many times do I panic in the face of the unknown? How often do I forget that I can trust the One who knows all things because nothing is unknown to Him? I’ve been through these lessons before myself, yet the unknown still sends me into a tizzy, though unlike Barnabas, I opt for flight instead of fight. Yes, it would seem I’m a slow learner in the area of faith as well. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Faith is a choice.

Each time we face the unknown, we also face a decision: Will I panic and fall apart at what I can’t see and understand, or will I trust the One who sees all things, knows all things, and understands all things and has promised to work all things for my good? What will it be? At that moment, we decide whether we’ll increase our faith or squash it like a bug on a windshield. We determine where we will place our confidence.  

If I learned anything during our recent sleepless night of barking and booming, it was this—all of Barnabas’ fussing accomplished nothing! His barks did not chase away the fireworks nor did his growls dispel the thunder. In fact, his reaction to the unknown had the opposite effect in that it created an atmosphere for less sleep than we would have gotten otherwise. Likewise, my faulty reactions to the unknowns of life create more negativity, more problems, more anxiety, and fewer solutions. So, what’s the point? When we look at it that way, it seems downright ridiculous to choose fear over faith, doesn’t it?

Faith isn’t something we have or don’t have. It’s something we choose day after day. It is born in the choices we make when confronting the frightening unknowns of life. And if we’re wise, we’ll choose faith every time because any other response will be as effective as Barnabas trying to scare away the storm with his barks and growls.

Faith brings about solutions instead of anxiety. And faith will give us rest!

[youtube=://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLdZF0cmblE&w=854&h=480]