Pages

Mission

“In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:4 ESV)

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Jake the Snake

by Macy Johnson

“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
(John 3:16 NIV)

Jake is not a snake. He is our neighbor’s incognito black Labrador Retriever.

When he was a puppy, Jake would gallivant over to visit and filch whatever loose item he could find. Nearly every morning my husband discovered tools, gloves or shoes missing from our porch. We knew who the culprit was – Jake the Snake!

As months rolled by Jake got bigger and bigger! The once playful pup is now a large, lumbering, dauntless mass of jet-black fur. He loves to swim in the lake and be petted, in that order.

I should mention the slobbering. As Jake approaches from the seawall, sodden, and drooling with a mouthful of murky water, he bounds up to me, plops down at my feet, and lays his huge head in my lap. I can forget about wearing those jeans another day. They are going in the dirty clothes' basket.

His beady black eyes, stare out between enormous ears and gaze longingly up at mine. “Please pet me,” he pleads.

I imagine God seated on His throne when I burst into His presence like Jake. Heads turn and slowly back out of my way. I am covered with filth and garbage and dripping wet from jumping into waters I should have avoided. Like Jake, not ashamed, but with enthusiasm, I hastily stumble to my heavenly Father’s feet and lay my head on His lap. “Please forgive me,” I mumble.

The Creator God lays His perfect hands on my head and reiterates for the umpteenth time, “I love you. I forgive you. Welcome home!”

I will love the unlovable, the messy, and the unwelcomed today. I hope you will, too!

No comments:

Post a Comment