Tethered

“I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.”- Psalm 16:8

Our family dog, Norman, is eight years old, and one might say that for the last eight years, I have been going through an intense stretch of sanctification by means of Norm.

You see, Norman is a “marker.” He is of the anxious variety (join the club, Norm), and in an effort to feel safety and control, he marks the corner of nearly everything in our home. If you walk into our carpeted rooms with a black light, they light up like a crime scene — all the marks of dear ol’ Norm.

In a desperate plea, I reached out to a local dog trainer who suggested that I tether myself to Norm for two consecutive weeks inside our home. Wherever I would go, Norm would be in tow. She explained this would help him feel secure and allow me to gently correct him anytime I saw him trying to mark.

I laughed. Two weeks tethered to my dog? Impossible. I have a life to run. Places to go. Responsibilities.

But the suggestion stuck with me.

The tethering would provide the reassurance and gentle correction Norman needed. And I couldn’t help but see the similarity to how God desires me to be tethered to Him — to abide in Him. To abide means spending time with Him in His Word and in prayer. It is a constant dialogue, a relationship, a dependence on His will instead of my own.

God tells us in Gospel of John 15:4, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in Me.”

When I am tethered to God — abiding in Him — He provides the very thing I was providing Norman: gentle correction, guidance, reassurance, and protection.

Close enough to redirect me before I wander too far.
Close enough to steady me when anxiety rises.
Close enough to teach me His pace.

In the end, my need for control ends where my abiding begins.

Friend, there is no peace apart from Jesus.

Abide.

The world will tell you it can be found in people, places, and things. But if you haven’t realized it already, that’s a lie.

Abide.

Jesus is peace. And without tethering yourself to Him, you will feel the need for control around every corner.

Just remember, the safest place is not walking free. It is a life tethered.

Reflection:
What would it look like to tether yourself to Jesus today? Could you spend five minutes in His Word? Could you invite Him into a situation or conversation you’re walking into?