Otis the Dog and the Prodigal Son

Now I know I may be stretching it here just a bit, but the outcome of both of the stories - the story of Otis the Dog (the pup of my niece Rachel), and the story of the Prodigal Son, have given me a shot in the arm this evening. Just what the doctor ordered!

First, let me give you a little background on Otis the Dog. Otis was recently taken in as a stray by my niece Rachel, (shown above) and her mom and dad. Now Rachel and her parents, are shall we say, not really "dog" people. But for some reason this little black dog has captured the heart of all three of them. The mitochondrial disease that Rachel was born with has comprised her mentally and physically. However, she has not lost the ability to love and laugh, and to be a joy to everyone she meets, including Otis the Dog. He has seemed to sense that Rachel is handicapped and he is very gentle and loving. He is not afraid of her wheelchair, and in fact has found it to be a never-ending supply of scraps that fall onto the feet rests. Rachel has taught him to sit, play catch, retrieve, etc. All tricks that have brought delight not only to Rachel, but to everyone who sees the two of them together. Otis has brought some much needed "puppy" into their household. Rachel's mom has even overlooked the "prizes" that Otis seems to feel the need to bring to the back door for all of them - dead animals! Oh yes, he is so proud when he finds the choicest, most rotten groundhog or dead deer to bring to Rachel.

One of Rachel's favorite t.v. shows is "The Andy Griffith Show." So if you know anything about that show, you know that Otis is the town drunk. Thus, where "Otis the Dog" derived his name. This name seems to suit Otis the Dog, as he is much like "Otis the Drunk" on the Andy Griffith show. Otis on the show sort of wandered around Mayberry in a perpetual drunken state until he needed a place to rest and sleep off his hangover. Otis the Dog is much the same (minus the drunken state). He likes to wander around (I am sure looking for "prizes") and comes home after an hour or two when he needs a place to rest and fill his belly with kibble and water. Both Otis' always have a place to go to - Otis the Drunk to the Mayberry Jail, and Otis the Dog to his brand spanking new dog pen and dog house. Only a week ago, Otis the Dog wandered off and didn't come home!

After a week of all of us looking for Otis the Dog, we had all pretty much resigned ourselves to the fact that Otis was not coming home. He had never been away this long. Rachel's mom and dad, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and neighbors combed the ditches all along the highway looking for Otis. He had seemed to disappear. Rachel kept asking if Otis had gone to live with Jesus. Hers is a childlike faith - one in which when someone or something dies, she doesn't question that they go to live with Jesus. It is just a "given" for her. She didn't have a better explanation for Otis' disappearance other than he must have gone to live with Jesus.

Now I have to tell you. Otis disappearing was the final straw for me in a long list of things that I have felt like God has been dropping the ball on lately. I have really been struggling to keep my joy. I asked God to bring Otis back to Rachel, thinking that nothing is too small or insignificant for God to handle. After a week though I was getting a little impatient with Him!!

So you can imagine the celebration that occurred this evening when I got the phone call that Otis had come home! He was a little stinky, a lot hungry, but not really worse for the wear. Just happy to be "home." Who knows where he has been! I immediately screamed and jumped for joy and then whispered a prayer thanking God for bringing that pup home!!! And, I whispered a prayer for forgiveness that I didn't have the faith that God has everything in control - even Otis.

I began to wonder if the joy I felt and the joy Rachel and her parents felt on the occasion of Otis' return, compared to the joy that the father of the Prodigal Son felt when he saw his son rounding the corner to come home after his disappearance and his time of wandering.

The story of the Prodigal Son, found in Luke 15:11-32, is a reminder to all of us of how much God loves us. A love that I still struggle to comprehend. I can almost see and hear him can't you? I can see that father jumping up and down for joy - shouting to his servants to prepare the celebration feast - I can see the joy that was pouring out of everything that was in him in having the son whom he loved so much return to him.

In the same way that the father rejoiced when his wayward son returned, God says that He celebrates and rejoices when we return to Him after a time of separation. I choose to believe that all of heaven jumps up and down and shouts hallelujah when one of us returns to our Father. Even when we return stinky, tired, hungry for more than this world has to offer, and much worse for wear. I LOVE that about God - we don't have to clean up before we come home for dinner!

Friends, I have been experiencing a time of separation lately - my joy has been harder to find. But tonight, I have chosen to return home to the Father who jumps for joy every time I stray and question His ways, but decides that my life is so much better WITH Him, than without Him. Tonight I choose joy. I don't know any other way to live my life. Life isn't always easy. God doesn't promise it will be. But I know that He is in control of my life - the little things and the big things. Even the "Otis the Dog" kind of things! Praise God!!

God is good...All the time!

Lori

P.S. Rachel, thank you for teaching us how to be joyful in all situations and for showing us how to live a life of faith! I love you! Rachel graduates tomorrow. Quite a milestone in the life of this young lady and her family who has had many ups and downs. But tomorrow when Rachel receives her diploma, I am positive there will be celebrations abounding and shouts of joy not only here on earth, but also in Heaven!!!