Take a Walk.

Since Benji came into my life, I developed a habit of walking him daily. Ideally twice a day, morning and night. It's great because we develop a relationship, and we both get great exercise. Together we explore different routes around the neighborhood and to the local park and back. No matter where we go, the point is, we go. By now it's expected and a routine, so he waits for me and jumps for joy when I pick up the leash.
Last month, I was away for almost a week on retreat. Now, I wasn't there to see how he reacted, but I can only imagine when I didn't come to take him on our daily walk. Not just one or two, but THREE whole days. He probably felt I abandoned him.. poor pooch. When I came back, he was delighted, but disheveled. He gave me a look that said: WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? I'VE BEEN WAITING!!! I THOUGHT YOU LEFT ME!
It took a couple days and LOTS of love to restore and reassure him that I still loved him.
Recently, my friend went on a family trip for a weekend and asked me to stop by her home twice a day to feed and let out her dog to do her business in the backyard (it was an indoor dog). I guess they didn't tell him where they were going, because the first morning when I arrived at her house, her dog had this confused look on his face, kinda like: Do you know where my masters went? Do ya? It happened everytime I went back, but his stress grew progressively. By Friday night when I came to feed him, he looked at me with watery eyes and was wheezing, desperate: WHEN ARE THEY COMING BACK!? WHERE ARE THEY? etc. So I had to sit down, give him a reassuring pet, and say, Don't worry, they are coming back. They haven't left you. They're coming back. When my friend and her fam finally came home, she told me that as soon as the garage door opened they heard her dog screaming from inside the house ecstatically, hope restored, and reunited once again.
Originally, I wanted to write this post to encourage you to walk with the Lord daily. But it goes another way too. Jesus is coming back, he hasn't left us on our own forever. He is the master of the home, and has entrusted us to manage his property. Just because we don't see him Now doesn't mean he's not coming back soon. He Will return, and when he does, not only will it be wonderful, it will be terrifying, if we haven't lived worthy lives for Him. So let's live with the end in mind. I went to a funeral service today and the lady who passed had lived such a full life, loving the Lord and living for him. Her whole life was a testimony. How will we end? What will be said and recognized and remembered of us? Let's run this race, as if to receive a prize.