I should have known not to eat a peanut butter and pickle sandwich just after putting on a clean pair of khakis. It’s the dog. There is no way I can sneak a sandwich. As soon as I open the peanut butter jar her nose awakens her from a sound sleep. There is the fragrance of peanut butter in the air! Before the sandwich is constructed drool is dripping from both sides of her mouth in long strings. It is inevitable in a few moments it will be all over my clean pants. Then there are her eyes. They take on that look of hunger and despair that says, “I haven’t eaten in weeks. Could you spare just the last bite for me?” She always gets it.
In Matthew 7:11 we read, “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?” I guess I could change that verse to, “If we being evil, know how to give simple gifts to our dogs.” The point is clear. The God who made us in His image considers us to be of much more value than a dog. Therefore, He is keenly interested in giving us His best not just the last bite. God’s best was Jesus and we get to share His inheritance.
Even my dog is smart enough not to walk away from the gift of part of a peanut butter and pickle sandwich. Since we are smarter than a dog, how could we ever walk away from God’s best?
Written by Roger Bothwell on November 6, 2003
Spring of Life, 901 Signorelli Circle, St. Helena, CA 94574