Keith's Korner January 6, 2011
The End of the Line
First it was the dad. Our first beagle, Thumper, developed kidney failure at age 2 1/2. Hundreds of dollars worth of veterinary care later he died just before we had to make that decision for him.
Then it was his son. Cujo developed kidney failure just before he turned 2. This time we were ready and were able to buy him a few months with a special diet. Then he too died.
By now it was determined that it was more than likely a genetic defect in their bloodline.
That left Wabbit, Cujo's half sister to a different mother. We hoped that with a different mother and being a female, unlike Thumper and Cujo, she would be spared. So we waited. Her second birthday came and went and she seemed fine.
Whew! Maybe it was the end of the line for that genetic defect.
Then she began to weaken, lose weight and show the other symptoms her predecessors had shown as their kidneys failed. So we took her for tests to find out. We got the results we feared we would. Her kidneys are no longer filtering the poisons from her body.
Wabbit had already been spayed, just in case, and now it is not only the end of her bloodline, but it is also the end of the line for her. She had a week or two or more until she would weaken to the point that we would have to make another trip to the vet to have her put to sleep and end her suffering.
So, what did we do in the meantime?
Box her up and keep her indoors, away from Mangler and not let her do what she loves most - hunt? Should we keep her penned up and rested and let her whine and wither when we take Mangler out hunting without her just to buy her a few extra days of existence? Or do we let her spend time with her friend and use up extra energy and body mass enjoying her last days hunting with us? Do we make her play it safe and exist a few extra days or do we let her live as best she can even if it shortens her time on earth?
Which would you prefer? Which are you choosing each day entrusted to you?
We're let her live and make the most of the time she had left. We let her live until she was ready to die. We chose to let her live a somewhat shortened life rather than force her to be cooped up, sheltered and miserable just to add a few days to what would have been her withering existence.
So what's this have to do with us as we begin a new year?
Even without a genetic time bomb ticking away, the life entrusted to us will be too short. What are you allowing God to do with the life He has entrusted to you these days? Are you just existing, playing it safe, or are you out there living life - the life God has entrusted to you - to its fullest? Are you finding your life in Christ, allowing Him to put you in touch with the gifts entrusted to you and being all you can be in Him? Or are you holed up, playing it safe and just existing - hoping to live inside a self-imposed incubator wondering where the promised abundant life in Christ is? When this life is over will you be remembered as a champion for Christ or forgotten as a nice, safe “exister”? Are you living to the fullest potential entrusted to you or are you holding back and failing in supposed safety, never knowing what could have been?
...and WWJD? - What Will Jesus Decide about the quality you allowed Him to put into the life He entrusted to you?
Yes, it was the end of the line for Wabbit, just as it was for Cujo and Thumper, but they did live for the time allowed them. Will you?
What will you allow God to do through the time entrusted to you in 2011 and beyond?
Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ. - Colossians 3:23-24
Pastor Keith
