We have a dog named Cowboy. He has been part of our family for almost two years. He came from a shelter in the state and we do love him. Yet, his name should be Tank or Dufus or even Tigger (as in Winnie-the-Pooh). Cowboy is a pitbull mix and doesn't understand what he is. Sometimes he thinks he is a lapdog. At night he will jump in my lap even though he weighs over 40 pounds and not soft at all. He is muscle and bone and sharp toenails. And sometimes he thinks he is 20 feet tall and more powerful than a moving train. In early spring he tried to attack a porcupine and got a faceful of quills (that was a bad day).
Yesterday he tried to overpower a rattlesnake. What that got him was a swollen painful jaw that was absolutely awful to look at.
We got him to the vet in Faith and he'll get shots for the next six days (seriously non-animal-lovers, there is a human point to this story).
This morning Cowboy was obviously in a lot of pain. And because he was so vulnerable he was able to just be with me.
And here is where the application for we two-legged beasts comes in. When Cowboy is all about himself and being crazy and has his own agenda and wanting things and trying to take things it is really hard for him to be with me and just get comfort from my presence. But when he is vulnerable and just him in his most humble way, he gets great comfort from me, his person, and I know it is healing for him. So, think about us and God. When we let go of everything that we put on ourselves and go after and our own agendas and our own masks and just be ourselves, we can find ourselves right where we need to be to sit in God's presence. Matthew 6:6 in The Message says, "Here's what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won't be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace." |
Isn't that good? God is so good to us. We just need to come to Him as we are and we will leave forever changed.