Learning to Walk a Goat and Other Practical Lessons from the Mansell's

The love bugs swarmed me. Maddie was feeling sick and was on the couch. Mom had just dropped a latter on her foot and was inside doctoring it up. Eska and the girls were milking and our little buck Bingley needed to come in for his medicine. You wanna guess who had to bring him in? :)

So, those of you who have any experience with goats most likely know one thing about them. The one thing that sums up the whole species of them. They are stubborn. Boy... are they stubborn. 

And walking them to the destination you want is always a challenge. 

I walked up to the stall and opened the door. He came out very willingly. But when I wanted him to stop and wait for me to close the stall, he yelled in protest. (yes.. our goats yell) I tried dragging him, put that proved fully ineffective. Then I remembered the tad bit of advice Maddie gave me "They don't like if you are in front of them." So I stopped (at this point he was so determined not to go with me he was on his knees) and stood beside him. Realizing I was waiting for him to lead he stood up (and I can't help but think he did so rather arrogantly) and strolled along as if it were the Forth of July. I walked beside him, my hand gripped tightly to his collar (or as Maddie calls it, "necklace") and gently guided which direction. He wanted to be the one in charge. 

Once inside, we were examining his condition. It wasn't great. Mom assessed what he needed and went to work preparing it. It was the best thing for him, but did he want it? Of course not! He wanted the grain. Mom said, "why do you always do that? You never want what you need."

As i observed this all, i saw a striking resemblance of our relationship with God to goats. God wants to give us the best. Wants to lead us to the best place for us, but we say "I don't understand what You are doing." Like the goat had no idea why I wanted to lead him or where I did, but, if he weren't so stubborn, he would be a lot healthier now, and I can't help but wonder where I would be if I simply, easily, joyfully, and willingly followed my Heavenly Father wherever He wanted to lead me.

How often God must think, "You never want what you need."

"Man finds it hard to get what he wants, because he does not want the best; God finds it hard to give, because He would give the best, and man will not take it." -George MacDonald