Lessons My Puppies Taught Me, Part 1

"If you say, 'The Lord is my refuge,' and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone."
(Psalm 91:9-12)

For those of you who don't know, I adopted two rescue puppies in May. Buddy and Molly are brother and sister, and will be seven months old this coming Tuesday. It's been 6 years since I last raised a puppy, and never two at the same time. Needless to say, there is never a dull moment at the Cooper residence.

This past Thursday, I had Molly spayed. That in itself is not particularly newsworthy. However, you need to realize that Buddy and Molly play together like two WWE wrestlers. They don't just play cute little puppy games. They go for blood. They slam each other into walls, doors, their Daddy, and anything (or anyone) else that gets in the way. They race around the yard trying to outrun each other while simultaneously leaping into the air and slamming into each other. They pin each other to the ground and sit on their opponent while mercilessly pulling on ears, tails, legs and any other moving part with their full-sized adult teeth. I regularly discover battle wounds, scabs and scars on them when I'm grooming them. You would think that they are mortal enemies. Nothing could be more false.

Buddy and Molly have never been separated since birth, and are completely inseparable. They love each other dearly, and act like Siamese twins most of the time. I affectionately call them the "Two-Headed Puppy." Needless to say, the morning that I took Molly to the vet by herself was a bit traumatic for both of them. All day long, I had to be the "second puppy" for Buddy so he wouldn't be too stressed out about not having Molly around. We even played puppy games. Needless to say, I lost, and have the gash on my face to prove it.

Given this current environment of theirs, and the fact that Molly will have her stitches for two weeks, it is incumbent upon me to somehow prevent the two of them from engaging in their usual rough and tumble activities. Yeah, right. That's like trying to prevent two magnets from attaching together. So, I dusted off the kennel that they were born in (it came with them), placed it in the house, put some fresh bedding in it, and equipped it with food and water bowls and a few of Molly's favorite toys. Like it or not, this is were she would have to stay during those times that she and Buddy get a little too energetic and can't avoid trying to rip each others' heads off.

To make things a bit more conducive to this temporary situation, I moved my laptop out to the dining table so I would be close by and able to watch Molly (and Buddy), and to reassure Molly that I was still around and had not abandoned her. An unexpected result of this arrangement is that I have had three entire days of sitting and watching these two puppies adapt to their new environment. In the process, I have made some interesting observations. And since I am a pastor, naturally I have drawn some valuable spiritual correlations. So these are the lessons I have learned from my puppies thus far:

1) Sometimes, we need to be protected, even when we don't know it. Judging from Molly's behavior over the past couple of days, you would never know that she just had invasive surgery and that she has a two-inch incision on her belly, held together with eight stitches. She has no idea how much damage she could do to herself by playing with Buddy the way they usually do. And of course, Buddy is just as clueless as to how much of a danger he is to Molly. Neither one of them understands why Molly has to be sequestered in the kennel during their normal playtime. However, I have knowledge that they do not possess, and am doing what is best for both of them. I am protecting Molly from further, and possibly fatal, injury, and I am ensuring that Buddy will have his partner in crime for many years to come.

How often do we get upset with God when our lives take an unexpected turn, and it seems that we've been placed in some sort of spiritual kennel? We end up sidelined and unable to continue on the path we've been traveling, and feel that we're being unfairly punished or cheated out of some enjoyment or blessing. One of the things I learned from studying the life of Job is that God is not required to give us an explanation for the things He does. Just like me trying to explain to the dogs why they are being separated like this, I'm sure God knows that we can't possibly understand the cosmic reasons for some of the things that He does in our lives. I'm convinced that sometimes He makes us take a detour because He alone knows the danger that awaits us if we continue down our usual path.

In addition, sometimes we have things in our lives that need to be healed, and the only way that God can bring about that healing is by setting us aside and forcing us to take some downtime. If you find yourself suddenly bedridden with the flu or unemployed, perhaps it's an opportunity to spend some "kennel" time to deal with spiritual wounds that need to heal.

2) Sometimes, those closest to us will try to thwart what God is doing. Buddy's initial response to seeing Molly in the kennel for the first time was to break her out. He still tries to do so every time I put her in there, until he finally gives up.

Whether out of ignorance or selfishness, our family members or friends may try to "fix" our temporary situation, not understanding what God is trying to accomplish. Not only does this discourage us, but it risks robbing us of the benefit of our "time out" and could put us back in harm's way. If you have people in your life who seem to be pulling you in a direction contrary to where you think God is leading you, you need to distance yourself from those people.

3) True friends will walk along with us through our spiritual detour. Buddy's second response is to try to make the best of the situation. He will play with Molly through the wire openings in the kennel, or he will lay down next to the kennel while she naps. This makes it much easier for Molly to accept her situation and be at peace with it.

While we are going through our spiritual detour, it's important to surround ourselves with mature believers who will simply walk with us or stand by our side. They don't have to say much (or anything - Job's friends were silent for the first seven days of their visit). Just having them there, knowing that we are not going through this alone, is priceless. Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 says,

"Two are better than one,
    because they have a good return for their labor:
If either of them falls down,
    one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
    and has no one to help them up.
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
    But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered,
    two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."

I'm sure I will learn many more valuable lessons before this episode is over and we all return to our "normal" lives (thus the "Part 1" in the title). However, it's time for me to take my Sunday nap with the puppies - the one time where there is total peace and calm in the house.

Have a blessed week!

Pastor David