Enjoy the Gifts

I had never heard of a Bully Stick before getting my dog, Sparta. Bully sticks are an edible chew toy that are much safer to give to your dog than rawhide chew toys (which are a choking hazard). Once I got my dog, everyone (trainers, veterinarians, fellow dog owners) suggested that I purchase a supply of bully sticks for him. And my dog seems to think that bully sticks are the best tasting things in the world!

I don’t buy bully sticks often, because they can get a little expensive, but every once in awhile, I like to surprise my pup.

Recently, I gave Sparta a bully stick for the first time in a very long time. I was expecting him to, as usual, grab it immediately and begin to devour it. But to my surprise, he didn’t. He took the bully stick from where I had placed it on the floor, went to his bed and just set it down in from of him. That’s it. He would sniff it every once in awhile, but he didn’t chew it. I was shocked!

This delicious treat was right in front of him and he was refusing to enjoy it to the fullest. It was like he was being cautious with it, and handling it with care. I thought that maybe he didn’t realize that I had given him such an awesome gift, so I kept taking away the treat and giving it back to him. I thought that he would eventually realize what was in front of him! But each time, he took the treat, went back to his bed, just set it down and sniffed it.

“What could he be thinking?” I wondered. He was healthy and hungry enough to enjoy it. Was he conserving it? Did he think he’d never get another bully stick? “If he only knew,” I thought. “He’s my pup and I love spoiling him. I’d make sure that there are plenty of bully sticks for gifts in Sparta’s future!”

Gifts from God

Have you ever been too cautious with a gift that God has given you? Maybe it’s been a relationship, an opportunity, or a talent. Have you ever kept from enjoying a gift that God has given you because you are afraid that you’ll never get a gift like that again? May you remember that you are God’s child and that He loves spoiling you! Enjoy the gifts God has given you today because He has many more to give.

If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:1, NIV)

Joel Amador writes from New York.

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