I used to have a German shepherd. He was beautiful and huge, and a very good watchdog. My schedule has always been pretty nuts, so I never had time to walk him much (we had a big fenced yard, so he still got plenty of exercise), and as a result he never really got used to walking on a leash. When we would go for a walk, very often he chose the route and just pulled me along. I was never quite able to overpower him, which, looking back, must have appeared quite funny to any onlookers. We went through weeds and brush and, to my horror, even into neighbors' yards. I was attached to him, and we were out of control!

Our spiritual walk is pretty similar. If we spend time walking together with God, reading our Bibles, spending time in prayer, it's easier to stay on track. If we just go our own way from day to day without the discipline of prayer and Bible reading, even when we know God, it's easy to get dragged off by the enemy in whatever direction he chooses. Even when we realize the direction is wrong, things get out of our control far too fast, and before we know it, there we are in sin.

"Dear children, do not let anyone lead you astray. He who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the son of God appeared was to destroy the devil's work. No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God. This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother" (I John 3:7-10).

Lord, I want to walk with You in the right direction. Lead on, O King Eternal.