Lessons from Horse Training

Recently I was pondering the methods God uses to communicate with me. I was wishing that He would just come down and speak to me in plain English. I was asking Him, "How am I supposed to understand You? Why does it seem as though I have been going in circles my whole life?" As these thoughts were swimming through my head, I had a moment of clarity. I remembered the method I have used when training horses.

I'd put a wild horse in a round pen and I would stand in the middle with a lariat. My objectives were to get the horse to look at me, then focus on me, then trust me, then do what I asked him to do willingly. Then, once trained to trust and listen, he could enjoy a freedom previously impossible. The horse did not understand any of this. All he knew was