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My Dog Wants To Talk to Me!
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That's
true. I've seen it! But, that's not the place to begin. Ivy is her name
and she just celebrated her first birthday with us. Ivy is our second
Beagle. If you remember I did a newsletter a few years ago about our
first Beagle, Jessie. I identified in that earlier letter how much
Jessie meant to me. She was the first dog that had lived in the house
and the first dog that, in some strange way, became a very real part of
our family. She didn't really do that much to be so "connected to us"
but she "connected" just the same. As I recall, the whole purpose of
that letter was to identify how much we all loved Jessie just because
she was our dog. She certainly was not the only dog deserving of such
love, but no other dog got the attention and the affection as much as
Jessie did in our lives. I compared that love for that dog to the Love
of God for "His" own, His family. A family made up of believers. That
Love for us is justified only because we are His. It's not because we
deserve it, or earn it; it's just because we're His! His Grace grants
it to us. (Galatians Chapter 3)
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I
really loved writing that letter. As I wrote it I discovered how deep,
how wide and how high the love of Christ is for all "His children" that
have accepted being chosen by Him. Just as we chose Jessie at the
kennel, so the Creator of the Universe chose you and picked you out to
be a part of His family. All the things Jessie needed (shelter, food
and love) we provided. Jessie loved us as much as we loved her. Now as
dogs go, she was a great dog and a dog that taught me a great lesson
about God's Love for His children.
Ivy, our second
Beagle is the one that wants to talk to me. It was this past evening. I
was fooling 'round with Ivy. I began to talk to her in the usual
manner. You know the kind of talking that people do to dogs, cats and
babies. You could just see it in her eyes. Pretty soon her head cocked
a little off center and she began to move her mouth in such a way that
I could just tell she wanted to talk to me, wanted to tell me how much
she loved this game. I think she wanted to tell me how much she loved
having this relationship with someone. Of course all she could do was
take off running and jumping and twisting add wagging her tail (what in
Beagle language is called a flag) at me. But I could see that desire to
talk to me just the same. Towering over her, a picture went off in my
head about the Father and our attempt to "talk to Him" and strong
desire to listen. I was almost brought to tears thinking about how sad
it would actually be if Ivy wanted so much to talk to me and not have a
language to communicate with me. I was aware of the sadness I felt by
not being able to let her know how much I appreciated and loved her
desire to "talk to me. "
There's a very rare simplicity in "dog and master love." I really don't
do very much to cause Ivy to respond to me, to love me so. Oh, I feed
her, give her water and take her outside. But, that's about it.
Actually, she could live without me, I suppose. It would be harder
living without my love but she could do it. (We, too, can live without
His love, but it's not easy, not comfortable, not pleasant, and simply
not the way it was meant to be.) For all the things I "don't do" for
Ivy, she still gets so excited when I get home each night. She's
devoted. Just like clockwork, Ivy meets me at the door each night and
"just loves me to death." It pleases me so to have that happen. It's
rare in this world that anyone is "unjustifiably happy" just to see
someone else. It surely is the same way with the Father. I'm sure when
we meet with Him he is overjoyed to have us so "giddy" to be with Him.
What great pleasure He must get out of those moments.
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Ivy's
"tickled" with any attention I give her; she goes "nuts" about it. She
jumps high in the air, spins, twists and barks with an unusual vigor.
(Reminds me of some Worship services I've attended over the years.)
When you take the time to watch and notice her response, it almost
brings tears to your eyes to be the benefactor of so much approval and
love. How the Father must feel when we celebrate before Him.
My dog wants to talk to me! She really does. She wants to communicate
so bad and be much more a part of the relationship. But you know the
important thing? Ivy does all she can do to express her love for me.
It's an expression with limits. I'm sure in the scheme of all Creation,
our expression to the Father is limited as well. However, just as I
appreciate and recognize Ivy's "limited" expression of love, the Father
recognizes our expressions as well. While towering over her, my heart
breaks observing her desire and her minimum ability to interact with
me. She can't "say what she wants to say" but I love "the desire to
talk to me" just the same.
Dog ownership is "strange" in so many ways. It seems like an ancient
idea, perhaps from the loneliness of some earlier time. I know that
people that have never owned a dog that's been apart of the family (in
the house, eats with you, sleeps at your feet, runs to the door to meet
you, does all kinds of tricks for just a pat on the head: that kind of
being a part of the family) can't really understand. They can't "feel
or appreciate" that relationship because they have never experienced
that kind of relationship "with an animal." When you tell people about
it, they just kind of shrug their shoulders and think maybe that's over
the top just a little bit. But, there's something we can learn from
that experience. Not surprisingly, people feel the same way when they
are unaware of a relationship with God. I mean they just can't get it.
It's just not imaginable for them until it's real to them. I didn't get
it about Jessie and Ivy until I got it! I didn't get it about the
Father until I got it! When we first picked up Jessie, you could never
have made me believe I could care so much for a dog; that I could have
experienced so much from a dog. After she died, I couldn't wait to
experience that "unconditional love" again. Jessie left an impression
on my heart. Ivy continues that today. Our experience with the Father
is much the same. Once experienced, you never want to give His
unconditional Love up. What was not imaginable before that experience
is now commonplace, normal and consistent. I'm glad we got a Beagle.
Jessie taught me so much about the Love of God toward us. Ivy has
taught me about our love toward God. I'm more aware of my limited and
simple communication with God and just how pleased He is to see that
expression just the same because "my dog wants to talk to me!"
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