All about perspective
I love grass! I love dirt! Oh, what’s that smell? Sniff, sniff, sniff, sniff. It smells so good, I think I will roll in it. Back and forth, back and forth wiggling on my back feels so good. Yup, that’s the best. Wait, what is that little brown thing carrying some sort of nut? I MUST CHASE!! They sure are fast, but I know I can catch him one day. Oh well, I still have those chubby fur balls inside that I can’t wait to chase. I’ll wait right until they start doing that scratchy thing on that post, then I’ll get them moving.
Who’s that I hear coming? Is it dad? What’s in his hand? Oh, oh, oh, it's my leash!! I am so excited! I am so excited! Where are we going? What new things do I get to smell? I can’t stop jumping! My leash is on, I am so excited to see where we are going today!
Wait, dad is taking me to that big thing that goes fast. I know I need to sit, wait before I jump, then we get to go for a RIDE. I love rides! So much to see, I am so excited for where we are going, I just might howl. Oh, sure why not? HOWL!! We’re stopping, here comes dad around to get me. Ok, ok, I need to sit, wait for him to open the door, sit for my leash. Ok got it, I can do this. Making dad happy is what I want to do. The door is opening, I am sitting, he gave me the motion to jump out, here I go... Wow! Look at this trail! Yes!!!! Another new adventure! So many new smells, so many new sights. I just want to pull, pull, pull. Dad keeps asking me to stay right by his side, but that’s ok, I got this...
Ouch! I hurt. I can’t stand. My paw, something is in my paw. I should have listened and not pulled ahead. Dad warned me many times, but I got stubborn and pulled anyway. Now, I have some really prickly thing stuck in my paw, and it hurts. I’ll just drop my ears and cry; I know my dad will help even though I disobeyed. Dad’s so gentle, he always knows how to take care of me. He sure fixed my paw well and got me back to the zoomy thing for a ride. I am ready to go home now. Dad even gave me a treat to help comfort me for the ride home.
I am so glad to be home now. I love my blanket, I love this couch, and most of all I love being home and cuddling with dad. I always feel safe by his side. I am ready to sleep now, until our next adventure.
One of my favorite people in the Bible is Joseph from the Old Testament. You can start reading his story in Genesis 37 if you would like. I HIGHLY recommend it.
Joseph had a powerful gift given to him by God. He was a prophetic dreamer. He was young and had no idea how to wield it. Lack of humility, lack of understanding, and lack of wisdom can cause problems in all of our lives. He shared his gift in a way that did not resonate with anyone around him and eventually cost him his freedom. Wisdom is so, so, so important in anything we do. In a world in love with instant knowledge, a deception has gone out lying to us that lots of knowledge is the same as wisdom. It is not. Not at all. Wisdom comes from God and is far superior to knowledge at every turn. Make sure you are asking God for wisdom about your life every day. Let’s pinky promise that together, ok?
Back to Joseph, he was sold into slavery by his own family. Afterwards he got a really nice job, tending the affairs of an elaborate household. It was a great job, until the crossroads of righteousness and immorality met. Joseph chose righteousness, and it cost him his freedom again. He was broken, stripped down to nothing, and wondering what happened to his life. A glimmer of hope entered his dank cell when some other down and outers needed some help. They had some difficult dreams, and God had them land right next to the man that had a gift of interpreting dreams. Joseph gave a spot-on interpretation and only asked for one thing; that they wouldn’t forget him, and say a good word for him. He wanted to be free.
They forgot, and he was left. I am sure depression was knocking at Joseph’s heart on a daily basis.
Time went on until the gift God gave him found a way to be used again. This time it was for royalty. He had to trust God again and trust in His goodness despite his pain. That’s not easy to do, is it? It’s hard to trust in His goodness when pain is stopping our ability to move forward. Pain is a powerful mechanism we all wrestle with. Pain tells us something is wrong. What we do with our pain determines if we are healed and molded into clay that is ready to be poured through, or we allow it to metastasize into something that just brings more destruction. Pain will happen in this life. People will do the wrong thing and cause us pain. Guaranteed.
But God…
But God promises, if we love Him and are called/walking according to His ways, then He will even turn our pain for our good. We give him our prickly thorns and He gives us His goodness and intimacy.
I’ve learned a lot from dogs. They always trust and they always expect goodness is right around the corner, and even when it is not, they are still ready and willing to hope again. Dogs trust that their master has goodness in store for them, even when they are told no. They trust that their master cares for their heart, even if they have to be put in a penalty box for a while (the dreaded kennel). Dogs trust that even when they get out of their master’s will, they can return to them with remorse, and be fully welcomed back.
Dogs have a real perspective on faith. Let us all learn a thing or two from this great creation that our very Creator gave us, because just like Joseph’s story, your greatest hour can be right around the next corner, if you will just trust His goodness once again.
Until next week…
Much love,
Scott
Remember:
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”—John 3:16 NKJV
