All Creatures Great and Small
The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’. Matthew 25:40, NIV
Just before dawn, I let our dog, Max, out. Beautiful pink clouds filled the sky. When I looked down at their reflection in the pool, a saw a baby possum clinging to the edge. I put Max inside so he wouldn’t try to eat it, then I scooped the little creature out and placed it under the big leaves of an oak-leaf hydrangea.
I looked more carefully to see if it had drowned or was just playing dead, and I noticed its thin tail and long snout. You’re not a possum, you’re a rat! Then it woke up and stumbled away under the hydrangea. It was clearly a possum.
All morning, I found myself pondering, If I thought it was a rat, would I tried to have saved it? Is a possum better than a rat? If rats invade my space, I want them gone. But I don’t want a rat to drown in my pool. Yes, rats can cause problems, and they scare me, but they’re an important part of the ecosystem, a purposeful part of creation. All creatures deserve a chance at life.
I thought about people I see around me every day; successful people and people who are down on their luck; people who obviously contribute to society and others whose contributions are not as obvious; people like me and people very different from me. Do I extend them all the same grace? That little possum reminded me it’s not my job to decide who is worthy of my care. If a creature is drowning, it’s my job to help. Possum or rat, prince or beggar, when one is in need, I want to help.
All God’s Creatures Devotional, written by Lucy H. Chambers
Dear Lord of all, help me to see the sacred wholeness of Your creation and to care for all Your creatures, even if I don’t fully understand their role. AMEN.