Earlier this year I went to visit our oldest son in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. He is a busy young professional and had to go to work while I was there so I had a couple days to just chill out in his apartment complex. He has a great place and it overlooks the complex pool. One quick open of his door and I was in the courtyard with a beautiful swimming pool so you can bet that I took advantage of that on the days he was gone. Armed with my Kindle, iPhone, earbuds and beverage I was happy as could be.
Every day that I was there there was a constant visitor to the pool other than the anoles. A young woman in her late 20’s or early 30’s and her dog came religiously. The dog was one of those beautiful lab mixes I would imagine and just so gorgeous and attentive. The young woman was in a wheelchair and obviously did not have use of her legs. She would position the chair close to the edge of the pool and lower herself out of the chair and into the water. She swam a good 20-30 minutes daily—back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. The dog watched. He never took his eyes off her. He was her guardian and took his job seriously. As I watched from behind my sunglasses I saw his head go back and forth, back and forth, back and forth as his owner completed her exercise for the day. I have to believe that if she got into any kind of trouble he would have immediately left his spot and jumped in to assist. It was such a touching scene to me. Total devotion and love.
It got me thinking about love and devotion. Have you ever experienced an overwhelming feeling of love and devotion? Have you ever felt that someone was as attentive to you as this dog was to his owner? Have you ever felt that someone could not take their eyes off of you? Not in a stalker way but in a good way? Have you ever felt that you were the object of someone’s devotion? What an incredible feeling.
I think that is how God looks at us. With love and devotion. Understanding that His creations do not always understand the vastness of His love for us and loving us despite it. I hope you feel steadfast love and devotion today, my friends.
