Dogs--the gifts that keep on giving...and teaching

          Mr. Bingley loves, loves, loves to sit in laps.  From the very first day he came to us as a little shaver, he's adored sitting in a lap.  So the moment his big bro came home from Charlotte and sat down...up he jumped.

           And the second I sat down to enjoy a little quiet time outside a few days ago, well, here he came (I'm so good at selfies...that's my arm, thank you very much).

            So today, I'm thankful for the gift of dogs...and for all they mean to all of us and all they teach us.  So many lessons!
            Here's one I learned from reading Randy Alcorn's book, Happiness.   Alcorn asks, "how can God, who is eternally accustomed to experiencing delight in his triune self, find delight in us, his creatures?"  Good question, don't you think?  How can the infinitely greater possibly find pleasure in the infinitely lesser?
            Alcorn goes on to explain: "Perhaps God gave us stewardship over creation partly so we'd better understand what giving love to--and receiving love from--lesser beings is like.  If my golden retriever, Maggie, is  hurt, I help her.  I do it not primarily out of obligation but out of love.  My care for her doesn't depend upon her appreciation, yet her appreciation brings me joy.  Seeing her enjoy me increases my delight.  We're not equal beings, but the relationship of mutual happiness doesn't hinge on that.  So it is with God and us."
            Oh my, what a simple, yet profound, reminder of the joy that we bring to God's heart when we delight in Him and when we praise Him.  John Piper always puts it that "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him."
              Alcorn writes of Maggie's gleeful excitement when his wife, Nanci, grabs the leash to take her for a walk.  Bingley's the same way--he dances around and barks exuberantly, anticipating the happy moment of running out the door and heading to the greenway.  But here's the thing--I love it just as much he does!  I love walking him and savoring the beauty of  God's creation together with my excited, grateful pup.
               "As God sees us from Heaven, doesn't He delight in us the way Nanci and I delight in Maggie?  The fact that God is infinitely smarter and greater than we are doesn't diminish his ability to find pleasure in us any more than our superior intelligence or worth interferes with our enjoyment of Maggie."
                Amen to every word!  "Shout for joy to God, all the earth!  Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Say to God, 'How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before You.  All the earth bows down to you; they sing praise to You, they sing the praises of your name.  Come and see what God has done, his awesome deeds for mankind!" (Ps.66:1-5)
                 Thank You, Father, for your relentlessly good gifts to us in even the simplest places and things--from dandelions to dogs.  From scented flowers to sunshine-splashed days.  From laughter to love.  You are so good, so gracious, so generous...and when we rejoice in You, our joy is redoubled...and incredibly, Your's is too!  You delight in the praises of Your people, and in glorifying You, we find our hearts fully satisfied.
               Your great and perfect love for us fuels our love--imperfect though it is--for You...but somehow, someway, You actually desire and enjoy us and our often stumbling love and worship.  Simply remarkable.  Simply wondrous.  Simply glorious.
                And so we simply say, thank You, Father.  Thank You.  To God be the glory.