“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eyes on you. Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.”
Psalm 32:8-9

I remember reading Black Beauty as a child about how painful it is for horses to have a bit and bridle (especially the bit) be used on them. However, this is the only way to control a horse’s movements and direction, since they lack the understanding and judgment of human kinds. However, we as humans are often like these silly horses to God. We lack the understanding and wisdom of God, so in each of our lives, God has a bit and bridle installed, though He is reluctant to use it. After all, we are human beings, not horses, and God created us with the ability to have a higher understanding of His will and His ways, as long as we are willing to seek after it.

Yet more often than not, I find myself trying to do things my own way out of pride and stubbornness, thinking that I would know more than God (or perhaps not even thinking at all). How silly. Yes, it’s true that God  love us so He gave us free choice to make our own decisions, but He loves us too much to let us completely wander astray. So like the horse, God will tug on our bit and bridle to make sure we don’t run ourselves over the cliff. It’s a painful tug to say the least, but it is the consequence for doing things our way instead of God’s way.

I experienced this tug first hand just this past weekend. I tried to take things into my own hands, even though the Spirit had warned me otherwise. In the end, I ended up ruining what could’ve been something wonderful in the long run and humiliating myself while I was at it. Talk about a painful pull in the bit from God. :/