St. Francis - a Saint after my own heart

The other day I was in a retail store where pets are not allowed. However, a man was shopping with a 6 week old puppy in his arms. The store clerk went up to him and my guess is that she was going to ask him to leave, but then something magical happened. She became mush and just had to pet the puppy. The next thing I knew, there were several customers gathered around, all loving the puppy and the puppy was so happy - lots of tongue licking and tail wagging was going on! The owner was beaming at all the attention his precious pup was getting. I overheard the clerk say that they were not supposed to have puppies in the store but she was not about to kick them out because the puppy was so cute.

Have you ever seen how most people react to dogs, especially puppies, or other pets as well? People start talking baby talk to them, puckering up their lips as they speak, and they are drawn to them. For dog lovers, dogs are almost always irrestible. When a dog is spotted you can almost always hear someone say "Look how cute!" or "Awwwww", or something like "Oh good - a puppy! I love puppies!"

Do you ever wonder if dogs look at people the same way that we look at them? Do you think all the tail wagging is a dog saying "Oh good! A human!Look how cute! I love humans!". Personally, I think dogs are alot cuter and nicer than most humans alot of the time. They love unconditionally. They don't criticize or judge. They don't care if you are dressed nicely, how much your sneakers cost, what kind of car you drive, or how much money you make a year. They are just happy to have some attention and perhaps a dog biscuit or a frisbee to chase.

To me, and I mean this in the purest, nicest sense possible - a dog is a reflection of God's unconditional acceptance and love in some ways. Perhaps God put dogs on the planet to remind us of how we should love? Sure, I know some will say that dogs can't love like God can, and that is true. Dogs also can't love like people can either. I know that love is an act of the will and is not a feeling, so I'm not insinuating that a dog's emotional capacity is that of a human being, but ya gotta admit - dogs are very intuitive and compassionate. They have saved people from heart attacks, rescued people, sat with someone who is crying and by their presence they have consoled them. Other animals have also done the same (My cockatiel once saved my house from catching on fire by alerting me that there was a problem in the kitchen. If I didn't run in when I heard her screech, the whole place could have been in flames.)

God made all of creation for us. Dogs are a part of that creation. Now, in my mind I can see that God looks at us like we look at puppies. God is like "Oh good! A human! I love humans! I made humans! They are so adorable and I just love them so much!"

For me, I know God loves me and it has bewildered me for many years now exactly why He loves me. I am a horrible sinner. My sins were some of the sins that nailed Him to the cross. As much as I love Him, I still do not treat Him with as much respect and love as I say I want to. No matter how much I try, my love will always be imperfect. But yet, God still loves me, unconditionally. He just wants me to love Him in return and will do anything for me, and He did. He died for me.

When I am with dogs, and all pets, and I see how sweet, honest, gentle and compassionate they are, I know that they are signs to me of God's love. Just last week I was very sad. I went to visit two cats. Right away one of the cats just knew I wasn't right. He doesn't always let me hold him, but that day he let me pick him up. As I cuddled him, I broke into tears. Not the loud sobbing kind of tears, but the kind that just flow down your cheeks like a quiet river. I was a wretched mess. Instead of jumping down, my furry friend stayed, and he purred louder than ever. He gave me the comfort I needed at the time. You see, in my life, when humans are not available, God will often send me a pet or two. Sometimes pets are even better than humans for comfort because they do not tell me I look ugly when I cry, and they do not say "that's enough" or "ya gotta pull yourself up from your bootstraps", or they don't tell me I'm being overly sensitive. They are just present. They sit. They wait. They watch. They don't leave me alone. And then when I'm ready, we play and the next thing I know, I am cheerful again.

St. Francis was so right about animals. They are such wonderful gifts to us and tonight I am thanking Jesus for my furry friends.