From Gary... Please, don't add any more fences

Price park in Dade City has become one of my favorite places.  I take the dogs there several times a week- and they run and run and are free.  They never stay more than an hour (its Florida after all and we generally go about lunch- so its 90 already) and I know when it is time to go because they will stand in front of the inner locke at the left and wait to be taken out.  The thing is- the dog walk is only about a few hundred or so feet square, so in reality its not that big (to me).  But to them it must seem huge!  I was looking at this collection of pictures stitched together and thought of the law.  How it had boundaries, designed to prevent you from displeasing God.  But, to some people there just aren't enough fences in the world, so they add more. Its about control after all, so the more the merrier.  Enter tradition and your area for "running" gets smaller and smaller until you can only walk and finally- crawl.  This is what the Pharisees did with their traditions.  I suppose they might have meant well (I am being generous), but it had the effect of counteracting the Word of God.  Take the following exchange for example...

Matthew, Chapter 15

 1 Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying,  2 “Why do your disciples disobey the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat bread.” 

  3  He answered them, “Why do you also disobey the commandment of God because of your tradition?   4  For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’  and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.’   5  But you say, ‘Whoever may tell his father or his mother, “Whatever help you might otherwise have gotten from me is a gift devoted to God,”   6  he shall not honor his father or mother.’ You have made the commandment of God void because of your tradition.   7  You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying, 

  8  ‘These people draw near to me with their mouth, 

and honor me with their lips; 

but their heart is far from me. 

  9  And in vain do they worship me, 

teaching as doctrine rules made by men.’” 

There is nothing wrong with tradition; but when it is accounted as being on an equal par with the Word of God, then it is dangerous.  Dangerous because a mere human being can think they are as powerful as the Almighty.  Idolatry, pure and simple.   Now, when we go to the dog-walk, the dogs somehow seem to know not to try to jump over the fence or to burrow underneath it.  They just run and play, do their business and otherwise just be the Canines they are.  I like that idea. Just be who you are.  Don't fight God!  Don't try to make null what HE wants you to do.  As usual, attitude is paramount!!!  You know- you can learn a lot from a dog!!!!

ps. The picture is only of the locke and a small area that protrudes at the front--  The whole dog-run is maybe three hundred feet square in addition to this part.