Gifts from God
Animals are near and dear to me. I’ve been around them all my life. Growing up on a farm we had pets of all kinds —dogs, cats, chickens, ducks, goats, cows, and who knows what else. Naturally, not all of the animals on our farm were pets, but many were.
I remember hatching chickens in an electric incubator. The first person they ever saw was me or someone in our family. If they saw me or other family members, they would come to us. They knew we would feed them and keep them safe from predators.
On another occasion I remember one of the goats having babies on a bitter, cold, winter’s day. By the time we found the little ones, they were frozen to death. However, one still had a little life left in it.
In the days, weeks and months ahead we kept it in a warm location and fed it regularly. As it got older, it didn’t associate with the other goats. I guess he didn’t think he was a goat. I remember one person asking my dad what breed of dog he was because he didn’t act like a goat, but more like a dog.
Another funny story of pets was watching a chicken hatch duck eggs. She was beside herself when her babies would jump into water and swim around. Equally confusing was why her stubborn brood would not fly up into a tree with her at night.
Animals were a part of our lives as they are a part of many of your lives. They are gifts from God. Just as he created us, he created animals. Just as he created animals, he also created nature —trees, grasses, flowers, etc. How boring our lives would be without God’s creations around us.
While shopping today, a service dog passed my wife and me in the store in which we were shopping. That particular person needed that animal as much as another human being. So many of our police officers and military men and women could tell you about the special bond between them and their dogs, these wonderful creations that God gave us.
With this in mind, why would anyone intentionally harm or neglect an animal that could be such a vital part of a person’s life?
Several months ago our best friend was at her vet’s office when someone came in with a dog he had found on the side of the road. She looked very pregnant as well as almost dead. Yet there was movement in her belly. The man could not take responsibility for the dog because he was not from here.
Without missing a beat, our best friend stepped in and took responsibility for this dog. She was nursed back to health, had her puppies, and is now in a home where she is loved and valued. Her name is now Penny. What someone else discarded as unlovable and not worthy of value, now has both love and value.
As a Christian, I think the sanctity of life is of utmost importance to God. The way we treat each other as humans and the way we treat the loving animals He’s created for our pleasure speaks volumes about who we really are.
I hope and pray that you will never discard people or animals in your life. Both are gifts from God