Well, it’s another Sunday morning. “But ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the birds of the heavens, and they will tell you; or the bushes of the earth, and they will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every living thing and the breath of all mankind.” Job 12:7-10 ESV
Sometimes when I write these, God gives me easy lessons and the writing just flows. Sometimes the subject matter is hard to express and I will write with a lump in my throat fighting back tears while I write. Today the lesson was tough, but I am just a servant to the greatest Master ever, our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ and will do my best for him. It has been five years since our loving welch corgi, Jewel, went to be with our Lord, this is for our Lord and for Jewel.
Loyal till the end, truly the closest of friends, depends on you for everything and in return gives you total and undying unconditional love. A best friend, a companion, a confidant that tells no one what you tell them. A comforter, a snuggle buddy, dependable, trustworthy, always there at just the right times. Some call them pets, I call them family. In the short time they are with us they find an empty spot in our hearts and fill it with all their love. It doesn’t even have to be a big spot they are not greedy, They will be happy with whatever you are willing to let them have and they will move into it. They will make themselves at home and totally change your world.
So, the question that is always asked is this, will pets be in heaven? In Isaiah, 11: 6-7 (NIV) this is what we read, “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox.” This sounds like Heaven to me and we will have our pets there, doesn’t it to you? We can read in Psalms, 36: 5-6 (NIV) this also, “Your love, LORD, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the highest mountains, your justice like the great deep. You, LORD, preserve both people and animals.” Again This tells me we will be with them again.
We know that God’s original creation was corrupted and it withered because of our sin, but it will be restored as it was in the beginning. That is the promise Paul wrote about in Romans 8: 18-21 (NKJV) when he said this: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; Because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.” Although our sins have destroyed ourselves and nature, God will restore all of it. Animals are part of God’s untainted, original creation, so they will be part of the world and life when He restores everything new, without the corruption of sin and death.
The best advice I know is for us is to love our pets and enjoy them while they are here with us, and trust God in everything that is to come in the future. He sees and knows all, and nothing is too hard for Him to do. God knows our love toward our pets and what they mean to us.
The Bible doesn’t directly say that our pets will be with us in heaven, but, How could that much unconditional love be excluded from a place that is all about unconditional love. We do know that God loves us and wants us to be happy. The Bible says this in Psalm 84: 11 (ESV), “For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.” We can trust in God that heaven will be a place filled with everything we need for our happiness. Our departed pets are definitely one of the things I need and I’m sure you do too.
During a public appearance, Pope Francis comforted a boy whose dog had just died, saying, ‘One day, we will see our animals again in eternity. Paradise is open to all of God’s creatures.” In 1990, Pope John Paul II said animals have souls. If there is a soul, there is a place in Heaven for it.
The Scripture says He knows about every bird that falls to the ground. See, God truly does care about animals. If pets do go to heaven, which personally, I believe they do, the ones that loved them on earth will also have to go to heaven to see them. The Bible makes it clear that the majority of people will not go to heaven. We read this truth in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”
God wants all his creations with him at the great calling, He wants all his creations happy for eternity. None of us are strays in Heaven, we all have a Master that loves and guides us. Seek the narrow gate your loved ones are there waiting for you. Find someone that needs a good word and give it to them, it’s not hard. Tell them you love them, and that God loves them also. After-all, we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, and all of us are part of God’s great creation. Let me get this started today for all of us, God truly loves each and every one of you and so do I.
