Wednesday, July 20, 2022

“Dear friend, I hope all is well with you and that you are as healthy in body as you are strong in spirit.” (3 John 1:2, New Living Translation)

                 It has been said that one can’t teach an old dog new tricks but I have also discovered that one can’t trick an old dog either.

                Our 15-year-old plus Aussie, Charlie, needs to have two pills in the morning. One pill, I break into two pieces because it is large. It used to be that I could slip the pills in a corner piece of toast and peanut butter and he would wolf them down. But then, he learned how to eat the toast and spit the pills out. Now he refuses the toast altogether. Imbedding the pills in a piece of cheese or two used to work, but he can still eat the cheese and dump the pills. Pill pockets don’t work either. Now, he needs these pills for his best health; one is for his thyroid and the other is an anti- inflammatory which really makes a big difference for him to move round more comfortably. But he is wise to me and my con games to trick him in taking his pills. I am currently sticking a little peanut butter on his favourite cracker and so far, so good.

                Like Charlie, sometimes we, human beings, don’t know what’s good for us. We think we can fool ourselves and others by resisting that which makes our lives healthier, more endurable, more meaningful, more purposeful. We refuse to accept the spiritual, moral, emotional ingestion of that which heals the heart, mind, body and soul and keeps them fit. We convince ourselves that we don’t need God, Jesus or the Church (at its best, at least). We fail to keep up with the practises and preparations that keep us fit, able and ready to meet the day and meet the world.

                Sometime ago, I ran out of my anti-anxiety meds. I was feeling pretty good and didn’t rush to get a re-fill.  But by the fourth or fifth day without those meds, my anxiety went through the proverbial roof. I was surprised what a difference a small pill played in my daily well-being. Needless to say, I immediately refilled that prescription and got myself back in some semblance of emotional calm.

                None of us are impervious to sin-sickness or the weaknesses it may cause in our lives. There are no masks or vaccinations which help. Jesus makes very clear that a relationship with him is just what the doctor ordered. “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do. I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.” Every day, we should remind ourselves that our intentional interchange with the Way of Jesus helps bring us into a spirit of well-being, wholeness, blessing, and strength.

                We need to take the time, make the effort and be intentional in our daily walk with Jesus Christ who as Paul wrote, is “the source of life, Christ, who puts us together in one piece, whose very breath and blood flow through us. He is the Head and we are the body. We can grow up healthy in God only as he nourishes us.” (Colossians 2:19, New Living Translation)

                It is hard to explain to a dog, no matter how smart said dog is, that his pills are good for him. But we, sons of Adam and daughters of Eve, are highly capable of understanding, evaluating, and digesting the truth of the Love of God, and how God’s Grace and Mercy work to sustain and reinforce our holistic well-being.

                I wish I could put this Love on your favourite cracker with some peanut butter for you but you may be surprised just how easy it is to “swallow” the Life which God’s gives to each of us through Jesus Christ.

                Open wide! It’s good for you!

 Dale