Just Another Dog Devotion

Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.  I Corinthians 11:1 KJV Continue reading “FOLLOW”

But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.  For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing; to the one an aroma from death to death, to the other an aroma of life to life.  And who is adequate for these things?  For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God.  II Corinthians 2:14-17 NASB Continue reading “STENCH”

I will exalt you, my God the King; I will praise your name for ever and ever.  Every day I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever.  Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; his greatness no one can fathom.  Psalm 145:1-3 NIV Continue reading “PRAISE”

but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst.  Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.  John 4:14 NIV Continue reading “FOUNTAINS OF LIVING WATER”

Let him lead me to the banquet hall, and let his banner over me be love.  Song of Solomon 2:4 NIV Continue reading “PUPPY LOVE”

I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

I visited Brookgreen Gardens south of Murrells Inlet, SC.  It is a 9,000 acre area in South Carolina’s Lowcountry with beautiful landscapes and a collection of outdoor figurative sculptures.  Several of the sculptures were of dogs and two were of my favorite breeds, Greyhounds and Great Danes.  The sculptures were made out of various materials and they all brought the scriptures about stony hearts and stony ground to mind.

God doesn’t want our hearts to be hard like the dog statues.  He wants them to be soft and pliant. 

In the Parable of the Sower recorded in Matthew 13, the farmer tries to sow seed in different soils.  The stony soil was not a good place for the seed to be sown as it couldn’t go down deep and take root.  When God’s word is spoken and read, it should find our hearts prepared and ready for the Holy Spirit to change our lives for the better.

God tells us in Ezekiel that He will give us a new heart and a new spirit.  He will get rid of our stony hearts and our new heart will be made of flesh.  This transformation can only be accomplished through Christ.  When we give our hearts to Him, he will soften them and mold us into His image.

Daily living can accumulate lots of hard-core calluses on our hearts.  As we go to God in prayer and scripture meditation, he softens those calluses and breaks down our attitudes.

David cried out in Psalm 51, after his sin with Bathsheba, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me”.   Let’s follow David’s example and ask God for a new heart.

Transformation is always possible.  There are no hopeless causes with God.  He is our hope.  He is our deliverer and he can soften the hardest of hearts.

Continue reading “STONY HEARTS”

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize?  So run that you may obtain it.  I Corinthians 9:24 ESV Continue reading “AGILITY”

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  Psalm 139:14 Continue reading “AS IS”

When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

We attended our local “Pooch Plunge” sponsored by the Humane society.  This event is the social event of the year for dogs and their owners.  We all strain at the leash eagerly waiting for the gate of our local pool to swing open and let the dogs in to swim.

Inside, we leap into the water swimming from side to side.  At least, that’s what Mallory does at the pool.  She can’t wait to get into the water.

Seneca is a different story.  She walks around the edge of the pool, barely getting her paws wet as she laps up some water.  Seneca greets everyone and is the perfect hostess.  She’s very social but has to be forced into the water.  Once there, she swims happily to the edge and gets out of the pool.  She can’t wait to get back to her comfort zone.

Our other two dogs stay home.  Bella doesn’t like the water at all so she misses out on an outing with the family.  Danni doesn’t participate because she doesn’t get along with other dogs.  She might have a wonderful time and love to swim but we will never know as she can’t be trusted.  Danni would ruin it for all the happy pooches plunging in the pool and having fun.

So what kind of church goer are you?  Do you plunge right in going deeper with Jesus?  Are you a social Christian, only plunging in when forced?  Do you stay away so you don’t have your life disrupted in any way; not knowing what you are missing?

Or do you stay home complaining about those who do go to church?  Or maybe you go, grumping and gossiping the whole time, ruining it for those who are doing what God created them to do.

Why not jump in with Jesus and go deeper every day?

 

 

 

 

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”  Matthew 11:28 NIV

I took a water aerobics class today for the first time and met a lady who had hurt her back by lifting her dog.  She had to be very careful how she exercised and wore a back support.

On one of Bella’s walks on the Antietam Battlefield, she got so worn out that she had to be carried.  She was picked up and toted along the paths.  Needless to say, Bella enjoyed the rest of her day of sightseeing.

There are a lot of reasons for us to carry heavy burdens in this life.  Sometimes it is to help others when they are worn out from carrying their own heavy loads.  We weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who are happy as instructed in Romans 12:15.

Many times we unnecessarily take on tomorrow’s worries.  We add care upon care until we are loaded down with the concerns of this world.  Things we can physically do nothing about, we drag along behind.  These are the things that Jesus tells us to bring to him.

When we run to Jesus when we are loaded down with heavy burdens, whether real or borrowed, He will give us rest.  He knows the things we are lugging around with us and wants to lift them from our shoulders, freeing us to rest and relax, knowing He is in control.

Next time you start to feel weighed down, turn your eyes upon Jesus.  Run to Him and jump into His strong arms. He will carry you and your burdens.