The Doggy Door: What’s Holding You Back?

dvilla222
Jun 29
6 min read

Lessons on Limiting Beliefs from My Boxer (Literally)

Henry is a very peculiar dog. He’s definitely like my other boxers, and yet so different. If you’ve ever had a boxer, then you know their idiosyncrasies and how good they are with their paws. They certainly think they are 70-pound lap dogs. They look intimidating, yet they are babies—gentle giants. They are also persistent, which can be very annoying.

Henry, my dog, decided that since his pack (us) took too long to open the screen door for him to go outside, he would make his own door by tearing through the netting on the lanai. I have to admit, it was actually quite clever and convenient for us. Instead of having to open the screen door, we could just open the sliding door, and he could take himself out.

In fact, I even put a rope with bells on the sliding door, and this smart dog learned how to open it by pulling on it. Needless to say, we all got used to the convenience. The dog literally took himself out to pee.

The Great Doggy Door Dilemma

This had been our way of life for a while—until fly season. Suddenly, the convenience turned into a nuisance as flies began invading our home. Determined to solve the problem while maintaining the convenience, we hired someone who came up with a solution. He installed a doggy door in the netting and reinforced it with a pole. It was awesome—Henry had his doggy door, and our fly problem would be solved.

Except… Henry was terrified of the doggy door. He couldn’t figure out how to swing it open. He was stuck—utterly stuck—by something so simple. I tried everything: treats, swinging the door for him, standing on one side while my son stood on the other, and even going through the doggy door myself to show him how it worked. Nothing. He couldn’t see the way through.

What the heck, Henry?

This is the same dog who potty trained in five days as a six-week-old puppy. The same dog who figured out how to open the sliding door by pulling on a rope so he could sunbathe. The same dog who made a hole in the screen door to take himself out. The same dog who opens every door in our house—and even knows how to press the refrigerator button in an attempt to get water!

This is not a dumb dog by any means. But he couldn’t do the simple act of swinging a small door open. He was stuck simply because it was something new, something unfamiliar—and fear told him he couldn’t do it.

The Truth About Limiting Beliefs

As I sat waiting for my now “dumb” dog to figure things out, I watched him choose to sit in the noon heat of Florida weather rather than go through that door. And that’s when it hit me—how similar we can be to Henry.

We face a new opportunity, a new challenge, a change in direction—and suddenly, the fear creeps in. A voice whispers:

“I always lose.”

“I’m not good at ______.”

“It’s too hard.” “

It’s always like this…”

“I’ll never be able to…”

“What if I fail?”

These are called limiting beliefs—subconscious thoughts we believe about ourselves that keep us stuck. They usually come from past experiences, fear of failure, rejection, or simply our brain trying to “protect” us from future pain. A limiting belief is a mental state or narrative about yourself that restricts you in some way. Limiting beliefs can become ongoing patterns if you don’t change the script of your life.And like Henry, sometimes we forget the truth:

➡️ We’ve done harder things before.

➡️ We are capable.

➡️ We are resourceful.

➡️ We are stronger than we think.

Henry had a limiting belief that made him feel stuck. In his mind, he couldn’t go through that door—even though he had done harder things in the past. The thought of something new triggered fear, and that fear made him freeze and do nothing.

I felt his pain. Sometimes it’s easier to stick with the familiar than take the leap of faith. Sometimes it feels safer to stay in our comfort zone than to risk failure, disappointment, judgment, or hurt. When we stop doing something because of a past experience, fear, or the desire to protect ourselves, we create a limiting belief that holds us back from moving forward.

I’ve done it—heck, I still do it. I’m a work in progress.

The ironic part is that many of us have done hard things. We’ve overcome the unthinkable. Yet we doubt ourselves—our skills, our gifts, and our capabilities.

A Breakthrough Moment

Eventually, I gave in and went back to opening the door for Henry. Until one day, after barking and barking, he got so impatient waiting for me that—boom—he finally went through the doggy door.

And just like that-The barrier was broken.

He realized: “Oh…I CAN do this.”

Wow! What a life lesson.

Sometimes we just need to go through the doggy door. Sometimes, we need for the “net” to be repaired and the old ways closed off in order for us to finally try—and realize that we could do it all along. We just needed to take that leap of faith.

Isn’t that how it works for us, too? Sometimes the door we’re scared of is far simpler than we imagined. Sometimes the solution is waiting on the other side of simply trying.

A Biblical Perspective: Spies, Giants, and Grasshoppers

This reminds me of the story when Moses sent out twelve scouts to spy on the land God had promised them—Canaan. After spending forty days there, they came back with this report:

“We came to the land to which you sent us. It flows with milk and honey, and this is its fruit. However, the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. And besides, we saw the descendants of Anak there.” — Numbers 13:27-28

The twelve spies, just like Henry and myself, only saw the obstacle in front of them. The descendants of Anak were known to be giants, and the spies developed a limiting belief: “They are too strong. We cannot defeat them. We cannot enter our promised land.”

But then Joshua and Caleb stepped forward. They had seen the same things:

“The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height.”

Yet their perspective was different. They didn’t deny the reality—but they looked at it through the lens of faith. As the people grumbled and even longed to return to their previous life as slaves, Joshua and Caleb declared:

“The land, which we passed through to spy it out, is an exceedingly good land. If the Lord delights in us, he will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the Lord is with us; do not fear them.” — Numbers 14:7-9

The difference was that Joshua and Caleb did not trust solely in their own abilities, but in what God could do through them—and in who was backing them up.

Suddenly, the ones who saw themselves as grasshoppers in comparison to the giants began to see those giants as bread. Eventually, Joshua led the people into the promised land.

There are so many lessons in this story, including how tempting it is to return to what’s comfortable simply because the unknown feels intimidating. It feels easier to avoid, to run away, than to do the hard work of pushing through.

Key Lessons:

It’s all about perspective.
Confront your brutal reality, but don’t lose faith.
Know who you are.
Surround yourself with others who believe in you or can see the vision when you can’t.
Remember that God is the one who gives you the victory.

So, What’s Your Doggy Door?

What limiting belief is keeping you stuck?
What door are you staring at, convinced you can’t push through?
Is it a new career move?
Starting the business?
Setting a boundary?
Pursuing healing?
Stepping into your calling?

Beloved, maybe it’s time to stop waiting for someone to open the door for you. Maybe it’s time to take the leap. Push through. Walk in faith. The truth is—you’ve had it in you all along.