Fear Not!
Read: Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 and
Jeremiah 29:11
David and I are dog people. We both
grew up with dogs, and during the course of our marriage, we have
been blest with several. What’s amazing to me is all that we’ve
learned from each experience and how the right dog was there for us
just at the right time.
Our first family dog was Casey – a
goofy Soft-coated Wheaten terrier. He could jump up in the air with
all four feet off the ground; he was wonderful with our young
children – always gentle and loving. He was tragically killed by a
car on the night of the Parcells fireworks. Our friends were there to
go to the show since we lived close, and he ran into the street while
a young man was speeding down it. It was almost like he sacrificed
himself, because it could have been a child that ran out there. We
learned from him that tragedy can strike unexpectedly. We mourned him
deeply (I think the kids all slept in our bed that night).
Our next dog was Tucker, a Springer
Spaniel. He was gentle and very mellow (in defiance of his breed) and
everybody’s friend. He lived to a ripe old age of 14 and many
people came to say goodbye to him when he died; he was well loved. He
showed us that aging is a process we must embrace, and it’s a
blessing to care for those we love when they need it – towards the
end of his life we had to use a sling to help him get outside, but he
never complained and always looked at us with love.
Then there was Toby…a Vizsla
(pointer, bird dog). He was the funniest, quirkiest dog we’ve had.
His antics made us laugh every day. The most important thing about
him was that after my head injury, he was constantly by my side. He
helped get me through some of the worst of the pain, dizziness and
headaches just by being there. When he suddenly contracted cancer at
age 8 and was gone within 2 weeks, David and I were devastated. We
mourned his passing deeply – we learned that life is uncertain, but
we must make the most of our situation as it is and persevere.
Then our dear friend Heidi found us
Jax, our first rescue dog. I knew because of my injury I couldn’t
handle raising another puppy. So Jax came into our lives – full of
energy and fun. He is the perfect dog for us now because we have 2
grandbabies, and we have no worries about him with the children (Toby
worried me before they were born because of his dominant personality
and skittishness).
So, is it coincidence that these
great dogs all came to us when they were most needed? I think not.
God is with us always, in good times and bad. As the Angel of the
Lord declares, “Fear not!”
Sue DeWitt
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