Great Dog Stories (22 page)

I was 18 and had gone with some other young people on a missionary trip to Japan. We spent some time at a camp in the hills near Osaka. On our last day, we were told that a young woman had been stabbed near the camp the night before. We were warned not to leave the camp or go anywhere else alone.

But that evening, I felt sad to leave the people. I didn’t feel like singing or celebrating. In spite of what we’d been told, I walked out of the camp alone and down the road next to a cliff which led to a river. I sat down and dangled my feet over the cliff’s edge. Suddenly, I heard someone walking toward me. My imagination ran wild. I feared it was the stabber, out looking for another woman. Here I was, all alone in the dark. I was terrified. I stayed frozen until the person walked away. Then I begged the Lord to lead me back to safety. He did. I made it back to camp, and no one ever knew what I had done. But without God’s leading and protection, I can only imagine what harm might have befallen me.

Sadie and I were both protected by someone wiser than ourselves who loved us. Our straying could have led to far worse consequences. Sadie could easily have been stolen or hit by a car. I could easily have been killed. The stabbing near camp was only one in a number of murders, suggesting the culprit may have been a serial killer. I was sitting alone on a tall cliff with a river below. He could have easily slain me that dark night and pushed me over the edge, and no one would have seen him.

The Bible talks a lot about sheep and how they go astray. Yesterday I drove by a small flock of sheep that live in my rural neighborhood. I watched what appeared to be a mother sheep nudging her lamb back into the flock from where it had roamed. She shoved her little lamb with her nose as he reluctantly joined the rest. It made me think of the parable of the lost sheep in the Bible (Luke 15:1-7). It tells about how a shepherd left the rest of his flock to find one lamb that was missing. That was always my favorite story growing up. I think I related to that lamb wanting to wander. I’m sure it was just out for adventure, like Sadie the schnauzer years later. Though I wasn’t out for adventure that long-ago night in Japan, I strayed too far and could have paid an awful price. But my Good Shepherd stayed with me, watched over me, and brought me safely home.

The Bible tells us not to be foolish. We don’t need to be like silly sheep. We can forsake our straying ways, draw near to our Good Shepherd, and stay safe in His loving care.

Opportunity may knock only once,
but temptation leans on the doorbell.

A
NONYMOUS

W
hen Erin was 13 she went on a family camping trip to Sleeping Bear Dunes in Michigan. They had a great time, as usual. Leaving the campground, Mom and Dad sat in front while Erin and her brother rode in back along with Gracie, their very independent and spirited golden retriever/Australian shepherd mix.

Being a warm day, Erin’s brother rolled down the window so Gracie could stick her head out for some fresh air. There are few things in a dog’s life more pleasurable than poking its head out of a moving car. Have you ever seen a dog do this without wearing a huge goofy grin on its face?

However, in a moment, Erin and her family were about to discover one of the few things Gracie found even more pleasurable than sticking her head out the window of a moving car—chasing squirrels!

Gracie jumped out the window.

Erin and her brother were in shock. One moment the dog was in the car, and the next moment she was gone! Her brother instinctively held onto the leash as Gracie suddenly found something more pressing than chasing the squirrel—running for her life alongside the car to avoid being dragged or choked to death.

Dad heard the kids screaming from the backseat. Then he saw the family dog doing 25 miles per hour outside the car. He put two and two together and slammed on the brakes. The family piled out and retrieved a traumatized Gracie. There was no physical damage, just a very freaked-out dog.

Needless to say, for the rest of the ride home Erin and her brother kept the window rolled up so only Gracie’s nose could poke out.

Dumb dog, huh?

But how many of us smart humans have ever “jumped out the window” before we looked? What’s your squirrel? What’s that all-encompassing obsession that makes you do dangerous, dimwitted, and downright stupid things?

For many of us guys, both single and not-so-single, it’s girls. It’s nothing new. It’s been that way since the beginning of time. Literally.

God personally warned Adam not to eat of the forbidden fruit, but Adam leapt out the window and bit in as it was offered to him by Eve. As a consequence, childbirth would become an absolute bear for the ladies and men would have their share of pain working to put food on the table. And if that wasn’t bad enough, now we all have to die.

Samson had a history of using prostitutes and fell in love with Delilah, a woman of questionable character. She was paid 1,100 shekels of silver by the Philistines to uncover the secret of Samson’s super strength. Even though he knew that divulging the source of his power would have disastrous results, Samson leapt out the window and told Delilah about his long hair. As a consequence he got a bad haircut, was imprisoned, and had his eyes gouged out. Ouch.

A whole laundry list of Israel’s kings took pagan wives and allowed those wives to lure them away from God and into idolatry.

And you’d think by now men would’ve learned from their mistakes. You’d think they would’ve realized that when you’re zipping down the autobahn of life and spy a woman (not your wife) by the side of the road, it’s not a good idea to jump out the window. But how many modern-day politicians, sports heroes, movie stars, and even priests and pastors have thrown caution to the wind and leaped out the window to chase a fleeting affair—only to do serious long-term damage to their careers and families?

And let’s not let women and happily married men off the hook. Temptation isn’t limited to chasing squirrels and girls. Its victims aren’t limited to dogs and the high and mighty. Giving in to temptation is a national pastime. Shopping for things we want and don’t need, constantly pursuing endless sales, specials, and the buy-one-get-one-frees of life…it’s all the dark side of the American Dream. Your squirrel could be whatever makes you leap before you look. It’s whatever pleasure you pursue that disregards God’s Word.

To put it in old-fashioned Christianese: it’s whatever causes you to sin.

It might be the usual suspects: sex, drugs, and rock ’n’ roll. Or it could be that job that pays more—but compromises your morals. Or that new car or upscale home that beckons to you outside the window. They’d make you feel so much bigger, so much cooler—but would also slap you with serious debt and burden your family. It could be an addiction to food that makes you leap…into a quagmire of clogged arteries and heart disease. Even the pursuit of religiosity over a relationship with God can make you stumble, luring you into thinking you can get to heaven through works, not faith.

Fortunately, when we do leap out of moving vehicles, when we veer off the path of righteousness to pursue our lusts and passions, we have a loyal God who says He’ll never leave us or forsake us. As children of God, no matter how far we stray, our Lord always has a tight grip on our leash. We may fall from grace, smack against the pavement, and be shaken up, but if we humble ourselves and confess our sins, God promises to forgive us and take us back into the car. Amen!

Forgiveness is the answer to the child’s dream of a
miracle by which what is broken is made whole
again, what is soiled is made clean again.

D
AG
H
AMMARSKJÖLD

I
had a treasured older friend who used to say, “Don’t pick at it or it won’t get well.” My little rescue dog, Munchie, was living proof. When I started fostering him, he had some serious skin issues. There were “hot spots” on various parts of his body. He had been partially shaved so these sores could be exposed and treated. But despite the medication, they were still bothering him so much that he was constantly trying to lick his wounds. This, of course, just made matters worse and didn’t let healing take place, so his rescue group gave me a cone. It was a plastic contraption shaped something like a megaphone and fit over his head. Theoretically, when this cone was tied in place it would keep the little guy from gnawing at his owies.

I soon discovered this particular cone didn’t quite stop Munchie from picking at his wounds. Nor was his current medicine keeping them calmed down. I did some makeshift bandaging to get us through the night and scooted him off to my own vet the very next day.

Munchie’s new doctor promptly recommended a slightly different medication and a new, larger cone. In short order, Munchie started feeling much better. He still wanted to lick at himself, but thankfully the new cone didn’t let him. It was cumbersome and I wished I could remove it sooner, but I realized he had to wear it so his wounds would heal. It took time, but gradually the sores got better.

Munchie’s healing wasn’t a straight shot. There were a couple of minor flare-ups. I had to cone him again, though briefly. My vet also helped identify the source of his trouble. He determined that Munchie was severely allergic to fleas. Even one fleabite could cause a significant problem. He urged that I take precautions to keep all the four-foots in my household flea-free. My dogs are now on a once-a-month pill, and my kitties get a monthly topical application. These procedures have done the trick. I have now adopted Munchie and he is a healthy, happy dog.

Skin sores aren’t the only wounds that may keep festering when licked. This same truth applies to emotional “owies” as well. I found this out firsthand with respect to a horribly painful hot spot of guilt involving my mother.

Mom was battling chronic leukemia for the last few years of her life. She had other health issues as well. At one point she was dealing with pneumonia, and had been hospitalized. When she came home, she still wasn’t feeling right. A caregiver and I thought it might be due to anxiety and her weakened physical state. I reassured her over the phone and got feedback that she seemed to be doing better.

I wasn’t quite at peace, though. A thought niggled at my brain. Could she be having heart problems? But Mom preferred alternative therapies to Western medicine and fought going to more traditional doctors. Would she even be willing to see a cardiologist, and undergo testing?

It crossed my mind to call Mom’s primary care physician and tell her what Mom’s symptoms were. But I was in the midst of finishing a book manuscript. Mom had just been in the hospital, right? She was doing a bit better, wasn’t she? And she had nurses at home. I pushed the thought aside and let things be.