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Entering the third weekend of this month, I was really thinking about this blog. February is the time where people think of love and relationships, but I just wasn’t feeling that kind of blog. I prayed like I do every month for God to lay on my heart what I should write, but nothing was coming to the forefront. Then God revealed Himself to me in a way He never had, and I just knew that was this month’s post.

Throughout my life God has revealed Himself to me in many different ways. Certainly through majestic pieces of His creation, through the many retreats I have been lucky enough to be a part of, and most recently, through my diagnosis of MS, the Lord has graciously revealed Himself in several ways. However, never before have I found God’s revelation in a dog.

That’s right, a dog. I’d better explain so you don’t think I’m completely crazy. On President’s Day weekend my whole family, including my future son-in-law, piled in the van and headed for McAlester, Oklahoma. We were meeting my brother, Steve, and his fiancee Cathy, to pick up Steve’s dog, which was now becoming Darby and Cam’s dog. Over several earlier trips to Texas, Darby and Cam had bonded with Envy, a full-bred Akita, and now that Steve had to let his baby go, Darby and Cam just had to have that dog.

Of course this dog would create some challenges for them, but it also had plenty of plusses, like being trained and housebroken already. So off we went on a 33-hour adventure to get them their dog. Little did I know how God was going to reveal Himself in such a majestic way, but as we drove home from McAlester, it hit me like the preverbal ton of bricks.

Arms Wide Open

As all of us arrived, the scene turned out to be a bit surreal. I watched as Envy ran to both Cam and Darby like she knew they were her new masters, like she knew they would be the ones who would take care of her every need. She put her paws on their shoulders and licked their faces. She was full of joy.

The next day as we drove home and most everyone was asleep, God laid on my heart how Envy was us. No, we aren’t dogs, although some of us have probably acted like it at one time or another, but when we make the realization that Jesus is Lord of our life, that He is here to take care of us, and waiting with open arms, well, we can, and should, just be filled with joy. The joy that He is there for us with open arms. The joy that He loves us and will move heaven and earth to meet our needs. If that was the only thing God showed me, it would have been enough, but there was more.

Oh Look A Squirrel

As Steve began to explain some of the finer details of taking care of Envy, one thing he shared was about the breed of dog in general. Akitas are a very curious breed, my brother explained. If she gets out and you just call her, she won’t come back because there will be some distraction she is after, and then there will be another and another.

Wow, does that sound like us or what? I thought about that and just my own personal life. When I wander from the Lord, there is distraction after distraction that keeps me from hearing His voice. I can wander around doing things that really aren’t good for me. My brother explained that if Envy is on a leash, she is never a problem. Well, God won’t put us on a leash. We have our own free will to listen to His voice or not. But when we finally do, He will once again be standing with arms wide open.

Utter Peace

I think when this whole revelation started is when I looked in the rearview mirror and saw Envy lying on the back seat next to Cam. He was looking at his phone with one hand while his other was safely draped over Envy. The God moment became even more clear as later in the journey home, I watched Envy nudge Cam so that he would drape that arm over her again.

As I saw that dog and the peace and safety she felt from her master’s arm, it was, simply put, us and Christ. That peace that passes all understanding came into view as I thought of us wrapped safely in our Master’s arms. I thought about how when we call on Him, we can feel His loving embrace and that peace that comes right along with it. We are never more safe than wrapped in Jesus’ arms.

Who Would Have Ever Thought

When we set out early Sunday morning, I certainly never thought about God revealing Himself to me in a special way. Certainly I hadn’t ever imagined that God would choose a couple and their new dog to bring His love into focus for me, but that is just another reason He’s God and I’m not. So my advice is to keep an eye out for those God moments. You never know where you might find them. Until next month…