Gracie Got Her Voice Back

It is a terrible thing when fear makes you lose your voice. It happened to Gracie.

Gracie was our beloved pet, a rescued Jack Russell terrier. She was found wandering on the streets of Memphis and turned over to the Good Dog Rescue League. We adopted her one Sunday afternoon at a dog show at the Jewish Family Center. We passed over frisky puppies to choose her, drawn to... what? I think it was the way she looked back into our eyes when we looked at her. You could tell that at first she was frightened of everyone, everything.

Likely 12 years old (no one knows for sure), she had lost half her body weight, down to 5-1/2 pounds. The fur on her legs was scant due to malnutrition. Her ears had scars from dog fights. Her front canine teeth were missing, likely from gnawing her way out of captivity. The vet who examined her commented, "What are you doing - opening a hospice?"

But she survived and over time she began to thrive. Gracie (as we named her) was a gift intended for my birthday. I should charge my wife with alienation of affection, because she stole Gracie's heart! My caring wife held her in her lap, prayed over her, hand-fed her, and loved on her those first few weeks. Gracie bonded with her, not with me. Perhaps it had been a man who had mistreated her -- we'll never know. She liked me well enough, but for my wife, she had an exuberant "happy dance" whenever Lana arrived home.

But the first year we had her in our home, she never barked... not even once. If she needed to go outside, she would make no sound; just silently stand at our feet and stare up; giving only non-verbal clues. But after a year passed... she barked!

Surprised, we celebrated that first bark with praise. No scolding, no angry words. Thus Gracie got her voice back. When I would put on my shoes in the morning, she barked to anticipate a walk on her leash. To be let out, she barked. To welcome Lana home, she barked. And her voice sounded good to our ears. We knew how long it took. We knew where she came from even though we could only imagine what caused her long silence.

Suffering, helplessness, and fear can make humans lose their voices, too. Silent suffering in the face of injustice or cruelty is not noble, it is pitiful. You have a voice. You have rights. Make a difference by speaking up for yourself and for others. The biblical character named Job, while in the midst of his trials, finally said, "I will not restrain my voice -- I will lift up my voice and cry aloud!" God heard him, delivered him, and vindicated him.

How delighted our Heavenly Father must feel when He hears us begin to lift up our voice in prayer, perhaps for the very first time. Instead of cowering in fear, instead of cringing, we can cry out to God. We can vent our honest frustration, our deepest needs, our desperate hopes, our heartfelt emotions....and He will hear us!

It's time you shook off whatever muzzles you. End your self-imposed silence. Call aloud on the Lord with your whole heart. Use your authentic voice. He will welcome the sound!

RON WOOD IS A WRITER AND MINISTER. CONTACT HIM AT [email protected] OR VISIT WWW.TOUCHEDBYGRACE.ORG. THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR.