The Hounds of Winter
Scenes from the Street, part 3
"The Hounds of Winter, howling in the wind." Stingitalicized text
Standing on a stopped bus, looking out the big windows, I saw an unusual sight. There was a crazy woman on the street screaming at something.
She was wearing what looked like a fisherman's hat and in her hand were two heavy-duty leashes that had very large dogs on the end. Next to those two dogs, stood another large dog off of a leash. All three dogs were barking in the same direction that the lady was screaming in, so it was quite a sight to behold. Everyone was turning to look to see what all the commotion was about. Apparently, the lady had a fourth dog also, but the fourth dog was off of his leash and had broken away from the rest of "the pack". The lady and the three dogs were trying desperately to get him back, but he wasn't budging. He looked helpless and confused, so I actually felt pity for the unfortunate hound. After all, at that moment, the woman seemed more like an unkind taskmaster, and the dog her beaten down slave.
The Bible describes a similar scenario when it tells us that we all have an uncaring, cruel master: sin.
"Jesus said, 'I tell you most solemnly that anyone who chooses a life of sin is trapped in a dead-end life and is, in fact, a slave. A slave is a transient, who can't come and go at will."
But the story doesn't stop there, because Jesus Christ has come to set us free from our taskmaster that keeps us reined in all the time.
"The Son, though, has an established position, the run of the house. So if the Son sets you free, you are free through and through." John 8:34-36 from The Message
Through a relationship with Jesus Christ, then, we can be set free from slavery, just like the dog was free from his cruel master. Amazingly, some people opt for staying with the taskmaster, like the three dogs standing by the side of the woman. They howled at their companion, freed from the barking woman, urging him, "Come back here right now!" As we pulled away from the bus stop, the hound was still standing there, free, unleashed, looking like he was going to run the other way. I smiled inside. After all, why howl in slavery when you can howl in freedom?
"All your lives you've let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you've started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom!" Romans 6:17,18 from the Message