It was one of those warm summer nights. We were in bed, enjoying the breeze through the open window. Then Sparky Dog, who was still outside, started barking and just would not stop. It was an insistent, persistent, LOUD bark. When we finally gave up trying to ignore him, Johnny went out to check.
Sparky had encountered a wild creature in our back yard and was very determined to capture it for the greater glory of Dogdom. The small opponent, being a opossum after all, responded by playing dead, apparently beyond the reach of any mere mortal, man or canine.
It took awhile, but Sparky finally conceded defeat and came back in the house and we all slumbered on.
Praise be that our Creator is even more unwavering than a fierce little dog. God will never give up trying to reach us. There is no place, no place anywhere, where we can hide from God. It won’t work — not even if we try the opossum’s fake-out technique and are, for all intents and purposes, beyond life, beyond conversion. God was, is and will be there. There is simply no hiding place for us, whether alive or dead, for real or pretend. We can choose not to hear, but the calling doesn’t stop.
As Psalm 139 proclaims, O where can I go from your spirit, or where can I flee from your face? If I climb the heavens, you are there. If I lie in the grave, you are there.
Sometimes we more deeply realize this after Scripture study and prayer. One time, it was an opossum and a dog who gave me this glimpse. Thanks, God, for the reminder.
Amen.
