Lots to Learn from a Loyal Dog:

Recently, I have been given a gift from my dear friend Merry who also gives me sewing lessons. Besides the sewing lessons, she is also there for me when it comes to walking with the Lord.  Since my husband and I have gotten puppies, she gave me a book about dogs and following the Lord.  The book she gave to me is “Lessons from a Shepherd Dog.” by Philip Keller.   This book followed Keller and his relationship with his shepherd dog, Lass.  All I am writing in this blog is a reflection of the things I learned from his wisdom, while having a great opportunity to relate his experience to my own with my precious pups.  There are many lessons we can learn from a dog, especially those who are very good dogs and who are devoted to their owners.  

Dogs are usually considered to be loyal.  Once they have an owner or owners, they really connect to, they will follow you everywhere.  They will want to go with you to bed, to the couch, while you eat, even to the bathroom.  Our dogs are sometimes put into a little play area, so they can move around,but still not have full access to the house.  This is typically when we are actively doing something or we are gone.  They are always trying to move it closer to us when we are in a separate room. This shows our dog’s heart.  They want to be in the presence of either Cole or I or preferably both, all the time. 

Another thing about dogs is their love for their owners.  They don’t just follow owners because of the act of obedience.  Dogs don’t do this to avoid getting into trouble.  (At least this is hopefully not the reason.  Sadly there are terrible owners out there).  The dogs we have want to obey and they want to make their owners happy because they just have that much love for them. 

This is very similar to the heart posture we should have when it comes to wanting to be with our Savior and Creator, Jesus Christ.  We should want to be as close to God as possible.  He should be the absolute love of our lives. However, there can be times when we really get distracted and can forget how much we really truly need and love our God.  We can be sidelined by the shiny things of this world, and we can forget they will all grow dull.  Dogs never forget who their owners are.  An owner can be gone for years and then when the dog sees them, they rush to them, ready to be on their side again.  (Such great videos to watch). 

One statement made in the book is, “It never ceased to amaze and stimulate me to see how thrilled Lass was in her whole-hearted obedience.  Her eyes would sparkle with pure pleasure.  Her tail would wag with joy.  Her body was electric, vibrant with ecstatic satisfaction.  This is what she had been designed to do.  And precisely the same held true for me in my personal relationship with Christ.”  (Keller, Philip. “Lessons from a Sheep Dog,” pg. 35). 

Dogs are going to make mistakes.  Coco and Cookie are still in the midst of bathroom training, and there have been ups and downs.  However, Cole and I have seen the desire of the two girls to make us happy.  They are still puppies and they are very stubborn in their own way.  However, for the most part, they just want to be with  us and to spend time with us because we are their owners and they love us with their whole heart.  They want us to be happy with them, and for us to give them love and attention. 

The Bible mentions examples of people finding joy in obedience and in God’s Word. One verse I want to highlight is John 15:10-11 which says, “If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.”  If we remain in God’s love and really start to know Him more and more, then we will be completely in joy and fulfilled in Christ. 

There are two challenges of the week. Then the first challenge and ultimately the more important of the two is to spend some time with God. Be like the loyal companion who wants to be with their master continuously. If you have a lovely pup or dog, make sure to spend some time with them. Give them some extra love and attention. I know there are some days or weeks where it can be busy and we can not spend as much time with them as we would have liked.