My Piece of God
Now this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in our relations with you, with integrity and godly sincerity. We have done so, relying not on worldly wisdom but on God’s grace. 1 Corinthians 1:12 (NIV)
I can almost hear Buddy asking me, “Mo, what makes you think I ate your yogurt?” Could it be the evidence on his nose? I only turned away for a moment but he managed to consume most of my vanilla treat. Being the most handsome GSP in the world, I could not be angry with him, in fact I let him have the rest. Kim Sheard (All God’s Creatures) shares life lessons that she has learned from Scout.
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My husband and I often joke that our German shorthaired pointer, Scout, is a very good girl…until she isn’t. Perhaps once a year, she takes offense at being left home alone and scours the kitchen for something yummy to eat or items that are fun to chew. She once met me at the door when I returned, tail wagging madly, proud to present the bag of nacho chips she clutched in her teeth. Once I’d finished laughing despite myself, I worked hours to clean up orange crumbs and spice dust. We have since put everything she might find tempting behind closed doors or out of reach for her safety, since Scout must stay at home alone sometimes.
Multiple studies done in the past twenty-five years have documented what Scout taught us: Even dogs that have been trained not to eat accessible food when told no will almost always eat it anyway when the human leaves the room or when a human is present but not paying attention. In essence, a dog does not have a conscience to guide her actions the way a human does. This is one of the traits that allows dogs to happily live in the moment (Nacho chips are yummy!) rather than agonizing over past wrongs.
The Bible gives many instructions on how to be good and avoid doing wrong. I do not have them all memorized. But in addition to the Word, God has given me the blessing of a conscience to guild my actions, as well as to prod me to ask for forgiveness when I err anyway. I think of conscience as a little piece of God in my soul, speaking to me as needed to keep me on the right path. All I have to do is listen.
Conscience is God present in man. —Victor Hugo
Loving Lord, thank You for giving us a conscience. Teach us to stay on the right path and not be tempted to stray. AMEN.
The photo is of Buddy, the GSP of a dear friend!