Lessons From the Mutt

     A couple months ago a "visitor" showed up at our house.  This was not a typical visitor, and not one most people would feel warmly towards.  Her appearance was less then desirable to say the least.
     For one thing, she stank.  A pitiful show of hair, hung in clods to her skinny, bony body.  She walked with a limp and was OLD!!  . . . And lets just say she's mortified me more then once!!!!  For example . . .
     One bright day there was to be an extra special party at my house.  Friends from out of State were in the area, and it was party time!!  This was to be a girls tea party.  Guest were dressed in white skirts and cheery blouses, and a fine display set up under the big tree in the yard.  It was china and dainty tea cups, and old fashioned pitchers filled with fresh picked flowers.  The table was graced with lace, and delicious scones and delectables were to be served.

     I tied our "unwanted friend" with a rope, and conveniently tucked her away behind the house and out of sight of any seeing eye. . . or so I thought.  No longer had the guest begun to arrive, when who should come waltzing through the yard but . . . you guessed who!!  Talk about heights of modification!!!! 
     I frantically tried to get my sister to help lure her away.  "Get food!  Chase her off!  Do something!!!!"  The only success we made, was to have her move to a location farther away from us and settle herself down to relax.  But of course by now all my guest had come!  This SO was not suppose to be happening!
     I confess, I blamed it on my sisters!  "Oh this is more their dog.  She would have been sent to a pound by now but they felt sorry for her , , , she claimed us!"  (That story hasn't died yet!!) 
     Our dog friend (and my sisters) has taught me a lot!  This dog has proved to have so much character tucked under all that skinny unattractive body!  Who is the first to come running to the car as soon as we pull in the lane, but the scrawny dog, waving her nearly hairless tail, totally overjoyed to see us!  The mornings we would get up early to pick black berries, she'd wait for us to come out and sit at our feet to "talk" to us in her dog language of whimpers and yips, so excited to see us!
     I'm reminded of a song Gorden Mote wrote to his wife, that expresses it so well!!!  Gorden, who never got to see his wife's face, with his own eyes, writes these lyrics,  "If they could see you through my eyes, they'd know where the real beauty lies . . . deep inside your heart, who you really are, if they could see you through my eyes."
     I wonder how much better we could really see each other, if like Gorden, we couldn't rely on our eye sight, but could see only with the eyes of our hearts.  How easy to bypass and miss getting a glimpse of the tucked away treasure and character of someone's heart . . . just because . . . It doesn't pass specks, not very glamorous, ect ect.   May Jesus give me those eyes that see through the eyes of the heart!