FEEDING THE WRONG DOG?

Recently I came across this image: each of us has two “dogs” within us, one good and the other bad. We need to feed the good dog, nourishing it so that it keeps growing. The other dog we need to ignore and starve until it simply fades away.

You strengthen the good dog by deeds of love, such as going out of your way to help someone or giving up what you want for the sake of the group, or being patient with someone whom you don’t particularly like.

But on the other hand, we sometimes find ourselves “feeding the wrong dog.“

You can feed the wrong dog in countless different ways. For example, working yourself up into an angry mood over some something that someone said to you hours ago, or joining in a negative conversation that is hurtful to all involved. When you impatiently write off someone else's idea  without even listening to the person, you are feeding the wrong dog. You can examine your conscience to see the ways that you tend to feed the wrong dog.

I think that a good way to distinguish whether you are feeding the wrong dog or the right one is to notice the way you feel afterwards. Feeding the wrong dog may make you feel good for a minute or two, but in the end it will not leave you truly satisfied, while feeding the right dog usually leaves you feeling a sense of peace, of being your true self, created in the image of God.

I have been catching myself recently cheating a little bit. Although not “feeding the wrong dog” in some crude and obvious way, I occasionally toss that bad dog a little treat. It may be some action that is hardly noticeable even to myself, but the wrong dog still gets the message -- and so does the good one.

The whole idea is to starve wrong dog until it dies of neglect.  And that takes a conscious effort on my part, and cooperation with the Holy Spirit.

I have found this metaphor very helpful at times, and I hope that maybe you will as well.