Leaping Lizards

My daughter Meghann despises bugs of any kind ... big bugs, little bugs, bugs that crawl, bugs that fly, bugs that wiggle, bugs that sit still. She really does not like bugs. In fact, if I had a nickel for every time I've heard her scream when she saw a bug ... yeah, you know the rest of that line. It's odd to me that she hates creepy crawly things as much as she does, because that was certainly not the case in her first years of life. Megs was born in Florida a little less than a year after we moved there from Tennessee. And in Florida, there are lots of bugs. And in Florida, there are lots of tiny little green lizards. Yes, lizards.

One would think that my two sons would be the children who fell in love with lizards ... that boys would be the type to bring lizards into the house, put them in their sippy cups, take them in the car, slide them into a diaper bag, sneak them into mom's purse, shove them into a pocket ... yep, you'd think boys would do those kinds of things. Never would you think a sweet little girl dressed in cute little pink outfits would be the lizard lover in the family. And yet, it was Meghann who was completely enamored with the slithering critters.

Another thing I remember about the countless lizards that Megs toted around with her was the way those tiny green creatures could jump. Many times I would wonder at the distance those guys could cover in a single leap. It was almost as if they had springs or some kind of self-propulsion device built into them somewhere. Which made life quite interesting when Meghann would bring them into the house or the car ... there's nothing quite like driving down the road and having a little green lizard jump into your lap. It didn't matter how many times I said to Meghann, "Leave the lizards alone, honey. Don't touch them, and don't bring them into the house or the car," she still touched them and still brought them into the house and car. The only thing that stopped her? Moving from Florida to Kansas ... there were no little green lizards in Kansas, at least not everywhere like they were in Florida.

I don't know why I've been thinking about Meghann and the lizards, but as I have, it struck me that there's a lesson in those thoughts. The only thing that stopped Meghann from carrying lizards everywhere was to move her away from the lizards. Think about that for a minute ... the only thing that stopped her was to move her away from the lizards. How many times do I continue to do something even after God has told me to stop? How many times do I keep on carrying things that God has told me to drop? How many times does God have to move me away from something to end my disobedience?

God, help me to listen to Your voice ... to drop the lizards I'm carrying and leave them where they fall. Move me away from disobedience, Lord, and closer to You.