LoVe

I’m not going to attempt to wax philosophical in this post but wanted to relay part of a conversation that I’ve been having with my wife.

You see, we had to put our beloved dog of 13 years to sleep last weekend and it has hit my bride especially hard…much harder than I had ever imagined.  Bailey (the one at the bottom of the picture)  had gotten ill while I was in FL and upon my return, we rushed him to the vet who said he was essentially experiencing liver failure.  We left him overnight for treatment as Deb was getting ready to leave for a women’s retreat the next day. 

Unfortunately, Bailey took a serious turn for the worse after we brought him home and I was faced with the decision to put him out of his misery immediately or try and wait for my wife to get home (driving in a snowstorm of all things).  I called her in tears to ask for her permission to take care of this before she could get home and…through her sobs, she relented.

For the past couple of years, Debbie developed a close bond with Bailey.  Admittedly, I didnt really notice and we never spoke about it but the depth of this loss has hit her in places I imagine she didnt expect either.  Dogs give us such unconditional love and need our complete support – helpless, transient lives that touch us deeply in places where we long.  We long for this type of love – to be cared for unconditionally.

In a group conversation recently, one of the folks commented how difficult it can be to experience God’s love.  I agree – to a point.  We are the limiting factor.  We want to be loved on our own terms…often with expectation of return.  God’s love is often expressed to us in more obscure ways…like the bond with a beloved pet.

We were hiking this past weekend at Hanging Rock when, from around the corner came a couple walking their buff-colored Cocker Spaniel who looked EXACTLY like Bailey.  Same face…same markings…same coat.  My other dog Jesse, who had been chomping at the bit to jump all over the other dogs on the trail, calmly walked right up to this dog as if he thought it was his best friend Bay Dog. 

The brief interaction moistened my wife’s eyes but, as we talked about it last night, we settled into an understanding that this is just another example of God’s pursuit of our hearts.  He knows her grief…he wants it to be expressed…to not allow the grief to keep her from loving a pet again. 

I saw the heart of Jesus for my wife that day as he engineered a once in a lifetime encounter with a buff Cocker Spaniel on a trail in the middle of nowhere.  He is always in pursuit of us…if we would just keep our eyes and ears in tune with His Spirit.

Thank you Jesus for all of the obvious…and obscure ways that you pursue our hearts!