There are some things I just do on purpose.
I bark at the mailman on purpose.
I chase squirrels on purpose.
And every single morning, I sit by my human’s chair on purpose because toast crumbs and scraps sometimes make there way my way as he eats, reads and prays.
Now sometimes I do things without thinking too.
Like running into the screen door because I saw a cat three counties away.
But my human says there’s a difference between living by accident and living on purpose.
I heard him reading from the Bible the other morning while I was pretending not to beg for bacon.
“This is the command—the statutes and ordinances—the Lord your God has instructed me to teach you… Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up…”
- Deuteronomy 6:1 and 6:7 HCSB
Then he scratched behind my ears and said, “Buddy, loving God isn’t supposed to be something we only do at church. It’s supposed to spill into everything.”
Well now… that got me thinking.
Because I know what spills into everything looks like.
Dog hair.
Dog hair gets everywhere.
Couches.
Truck seats.
Black pants.
Peanut butter sandwiches somehow.
If you’ve got a dog, you’re carrying part of him with you whether you planned to or not.
Maybe loving God is supposed to be like that.
Not just a Sunday thing.
Not just a prayer-before-supper thing.
But something woven into all the ordinary moments.
The walking.
The talking.
The working.
The driving.
The sitting on the porch watching the sunset while a dog snores at your feet.
My human says people often want giant moments for God while ignoring little moments with God.
But Deuteronomy talks about everyday life.
Sitting down.
Walking along the path.
Getting up.
Going to bed.
Regular life.
I think sometimes humans imagine following Jesus means doing something huge and dramatic.
Meanwhile, maybe God is smiling at the person quietly encouraging a coworker… praying with their child… showing kindness to the cashier… or choosing forgiveness when growling would feel better.
Dogs understand routines pretty well.
We know where the food bowl sits.
We know when it’s bedtime.
We know where the leash hangs.
And after enough repetition, those things become part of us.
Maybe that’s why God told His people to keep His words constantly before them. Because what stays before your eyes eventually settles into your heart.
And what settles into your heart eventually shows up in your life.
You know what I’ve noticed about my human?
When he spends time with Jesus on purpose… he loves people better on purpose too.
He’s slower to anger.
Faster to help.
Quicker to pray.
More patient when I accidentally drag mud through the house after he specifically said, “Stay out of the creek.”
So maybe loving God with all your heart, soul, and strength looks less like one giant leap… and more like thousands of small faithful steps taken every day on purpose.
And if you ask me, that’s a pretty good way to walk through life…
On purpose.
Especially if somehow there’s bacon involved.
Keep the Faith… Carpe Diem
