Tear up the rug...

We're hearing the pitter-patter of little feet in our house! Not human feet, mind you, but the the puppy belonging to elder son and daughter-in-law who are vacationing for a couple weeks. And not really little feet, either. Winni, the wonder mutt, is already bigger than any of our previous pooches...and she's only six months old.

She is a sweet dog...loves to run and play (like all puppies do). Full of the warmth and exuberance and loyalty that are core reasons for having dogs in the first place. Even after having to clean up a few "accidents," we're still going to enjoy the days ahead.

We're also going to have to go shopping.

Yesterday...all that exuberance was unleashed on an innocent bath rug left within tooth-and-claw range while we were gone for a while. It was meant to be something soft and cuddly for the pup to sleep on in her kennel. But upon returning home, we found a mound of shredded blue nylon and, after speaking her name with some gravity, one guilty-looking pooch.

So much for comfort.

Question of the day: have you ever destroyed something that was meant for your pleasure, your enjoyment? Have you ever taken a gift, given to you in love or out of concern...something that could have been for your good...and shredded it? If you are a human being, the answer is undoubtedly "yes." Like the pup temporarily in residence at our place, we all make mistakes. We all too often don't grasp the purpose behind what we have been given...or we just get so carried away by our own agenda that the good things around us end up destroyed.

I think that, sometimes, God must look upon us as though we were a whole race of puppies. We can be loving and loyal. We are smart enough to learn and joyful enough to delight. Unfortunately, we have a tendency to mis-use what we've been given and to pee on the rug.

Thankfully, God...even when He speaks our name in judgment...keeps coming back to play with us, to care for us, to pour out upon us an abundance of mercy and guidance...all in the hopes, I'm sure, that we might grow into the loving and loyal companions we were created to be.

Woof.