The best gift ever!
Zephaniah chapter 3 verses 16-18.
"Cheer up, do not be afraid. For the Lord your God has arrived to live among you. He is a mighty Savior. He will give you victory. He will rejoice over you in great gladness; He will love you and not accuse you." Is that a joyous cheer I hear? No, it is the Lord Himself exulting over you in happy song.
The best gift ever is the life we have with those we care about and love. My wife and I were blessed with having a dog arrive on our door step one evening. He was only a puppy then and I was a little hesitant about bringing in a stray. He was snappy and afraid. My wife took him in a room and stayed with him. She told me he hid away not sure of his surroundings. He accepted the food and water and after a short while, he climbed up on the bed and cuddled into a ball above her head.
Well, that made us think he had run away from a home. He was so scruffy looking. My wife tried hard to find the owners by knocking on doors and placing a lost dog add in the newspaper. The local animal shelter had not heard of anyone looking for him and after about a 2 week period we decided to keep him.
He must have come from someone because he knew how to sit up and look cute while waiting for a tid bit. He knew to lay on the back of the couch, he knew to sleep above my wife's head at night. He was not wearing any collar, so we named him Bandit and that was 10 years ago. Bandit made himself at home quickly taking to Echo, our border collie and our cat Faith. Echo would chase Bandit around the coffee table, not at a running pace but like it was a game of follow me.
Bandit was never alone, he always had someone around. He loved to go for rides with us on the 4 wheeler. He would sit in my wife's arms looking over my shoulder. I remember the day she bought a dog pram home. It set me back that she thought I would push a stroller that had our dog in it. Wow, was I wrong. The stroller calmed him and he was able to go places with us because he felt safe and secure.
It's never an easy time to say goodbye to your buddy for the past many years, but dogs are God's gift and they are meant to prepare us for the joy we will receive in heaven. We are never meant to be alone, we are meant to love and be loved. That is why we get sad when there is hurt and suffering. The time we spend in caring and loving fills us with memories that we share and talk about.
Bandit would grab Echo's frisbee just to enjoy being chased. Bandit enjoyed playing with other animals, not thinking at all about the consequences. When visiting with family he wanted to play with Zozo but ended up having to wait patiently downstairs. All is good in fun and play until the boundaries are pushed. He was mouthy towards those he did not know and trust. So, he was doted over making sure that he lived the best possible calm filled life he could have.
When he was neutered the vet did not put a cone on him while he was sedated. They tried afterwards, to no avail. They handed us the cone and said good luck with getting it on him. That was a hilarious time, every time we got close to him he would give us a face or growl. He may have been small but we did not want it to be a tackling match. We did eventually get it on.
If someone approached the house, he would bark himself into a frenzy, where it would be very difficult to control him. The best bet was to ask everyone to call before coming so that we could put him another room. Treats were used to coax him when unexpected visitors showed up and many times that would not work. Great guard dog.
We could sit in public with him as long as no one approached us. Then he would voice his opinion. He was a little guy whom we loved dearly. He had a great life and will surely be missed. God created Bandit and dropped him off at our door one day. He is now with God having the time of his life. He gave us his best and we gave him the love he deserved.
You're are forever with us Bandit.
Thank You Father for Jesus. Thank You for Bandit and the memories we will treasure forever. 😊
Genesis 1 chapter 21.
So God created the great sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarm, according to their kind and every winged bird according to it's kind. And God saw it was good.
Job chapter 12 verses 10-
For the soul of every living thing is in the hand of God, and the breath of all mankind. Just as my mouth can taste food, so my mind tastes truth when I hear it. And as you say, older men like me are wise. They understand. But true wisdom and power are God's. He alone knows what we should do; He understands.
Ecclesiastes chapter 3 verse 19-21.
For men and animals both breath the same air, and both die. So mankind has no real advantage over the beasts; what an absurdity! All go to one place---the dust from which they came and to which they must return. For who can prove that the spirit of man goes upward and the spirit of animals goes downward into dust?
Philippians chapter 4 verse 8.
Fix your thoughts on what is true and good and right. Think about things that are pure and lovely, and dwell on the fine, good things in others. Think about all you can praise God for and be glad about.
Psalm chapter 34 verse 18.
The Lord is close to brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
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