A Dog's Life

"You hold me by my right hand.
You give me wise advice to guide me.
And when I die, you will take me away
into the glory of heaven." 
Psalm 73:24

     The Bible doesn't say whether or not dogs go to heaven, but if there's a snowball's chance they do, I know one who should be there now. Our Westie-Maltese, Little Mac, was a better being than me. He was unquestioningly loyal, over-the-top friendly, unconditionally loving, eager to please, great with people of all ages, smart as a whip, and always nearby for cuddling and for comfort.  He barked only until he knew we were ok with the noises he heard. He cleaned up under the table and counters. He was a world-class greeter for us and a guardian for our cat, Sonny, and intervened when a neighborhood cat threatened. He was a back-warmer who loved socializing with his people and their people.  And, he managed all these wonderful qualities with a dog's I.Q., no poseable thumbs and no verbal language skills.
      I don't measure up to a dog's life, yet God promises me heaven. If dogs were smart enough to understand the future, they might revolt.  But we humans know just enough to be dangerously un-Christlike.  We withhold kindness because we've heard too many bad endings. We think through good intentions until we've missed the opportunity for a random act of kindness. We fear need too much to be generous and we disdain imperfection too much to be loyal. Many of us have been hurt too deeply to love again or to love well, and we can be too cowardly to guard other people's reputations. Some of us are too lazy to be helpful and too self-consumed to care. What we need are better ears to hear the Spirit and a quicker response time so we don't depend on our eyes to be our guides.  
"We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us." 
1 Corinthians 13:12

Lord, my dog has put me to shame. Help me live a life worthy of Your calling.  Fill me with Your love and the desire to be Christlike for Your Name's sake. Make me sensitive to where I'm needed and willing for You to use me. Thank You for creating dogs, God, because they express Your love to us as well as anyone or anything can.
In the Name of Jesus, the Good Shepherd Who died for some unappreciative sheep