What a Dog Can Teach Us about Loving God

After dinner, I tend to rest for about 30 minutes before I take Truff for his evening walk. But Truff does not think I need a rest after my meal. Once I am done with dinner, even if I am still sitting at the dining table, he will climb on me or give me a wet noob. If I rest on the sofa, he will do what he can to get me off the sofa. As much as I love him, I am not keen on getting licks or noobs on my face or head. But it is his loving way of telling me that he has been ready for his walk for the past two hours and we need to get going immediately. I will take the opportunity to bear hug him and squish his face in hope that he will leave me alone for a little longer. We do this tug-of-war until I come to the acceptance that I will not get any rest until I bring him for his walk. “Truff, I give up!” He is very persistent in his requests. Single-minded. Refusing to back down. He also knows where he stands in our relationship. He uses everything in his arsenal to get me off the sofa—aside from his licks and noobs, he will stand on me, lock his eyes on mine, and wag his tail like it is doing the hula. Not for a moment does he waver or question whether he needs to be a bit more subtle in making his demands. He knows that he is well loved and that my heart can be changed. There is so much I can learn from Truff about my posture before God. Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment. ~Matt 15:21-28 The Canaanite woman was persistent. When Jesus tested her faith, she came even closer to Jesus and knelt before Him. There were no long prayers but an urgent and desperate plea to the Lord to help her. Jesus tested her again with a dog analogy. Instead of being insulted or discouraged, she stepped up her game with her own dog analogy. Ever prayed so boldly? Could it be that Jesus used this dog analogy because he knew how persistent dogs were at the dinner table? Could it be that He knew that this woman has as much humility as a dog to plea to her Master? This woman had the faith to approach Jesus although she knew that Jews considered Canaanites as poorly as dogs. She knew exactly who Jesus was, Lord, Son of David. And because of who He is, she knew He would have great mercy regardless of her lowly position. In fact, she boldly declared that it was right for her to receive His mercy. Both Jesus and the woman agreed that dogs persevere even if all they will get are crumbs. Jesus declares that the one who perseveres like a dog under its master’s table has great faith. Ever felt like you do not have the appetite to feed on God’s word? Felt like you have had too much anxiety, excitement or even religiosity to feed on that the Bible just has to wait? The religious Jews of that time were not at all eager to receive the Bread of Life. So the Bread was indeed tossed to the “dogs”. Jesus, the Bread of Life, was broken for us. Nailed on the cross on Good Friday, with a signed that read “JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS” (John 19:19). The One who was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel was tossed to the dogs and left to die. The Canaanite woman’s dog analogy was prophetic. You may feel that you lack the status in life to approach God—a woman in 33AD, with a demon-possessed daughter, non-Jew, a Canaanite. But the Lord God Almighty Himself will encounter you personally in your circumstances. If you are feeling like a homeless dog, take great comfort in what Jesus did for you. Approach His throne of grace with confidence. Persevere when those around you tell you that you are not good enough.