Published on 09/26/2006

It's good to remember that in God's perfect paradise, all are equally welcomed and equally loved.

Commentary

You may have seen this story by now; I just noticed it on The New York Times most e-mailed list. The title of the article is "A Dog's Life, Upgraded." And how.

The Top Dog Country Club in New Germany, Minnesota features a tiled, in-ground, heated swimming pool for dogs. At similar facilities, a dog's activities can include hiking, swimming, listening to music, watching television, and getting a pedicure complete with nail polish (I guess dogs don't get manicures, do they?). Rooms are called "bungalows," "villas" and "suites. I'm thinking a bungalow sounds really good this morning, except I can't afford one. If your dog stays at the $50-a-day "ambassador suite" at Club Bow Wow, a staff member sleeps overnight in the room. Maybe I can get a job as the staff member. Some kennels charge $185 a night. And people are giving their pets such "vacations," to the tune of $2.7 billion this year.

Corey Cohen is an animal-behavior consultant (I didn't know they had those) whose business is called A New Leash on Life. He says that such services are more meaningful to the owners than to the pets, and function mainly to reduce human guilt. Do you think?

It's hard to imagine people spending such extravagant sums on their pets while starvation threatens millions around the world. I know that pet owners are not choosing animals over children, and that they can give to charity and to cats as well. But the disparity of the nations is a troubling fact of life on this fallen planet.

It's therefore good to remember that in God's perfect paradise, all are equally welcomed and equally loved. When John looked into heaven's worship, this is what he saw: "there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: 'Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb'" (Revelation 7:9-10). Yours may be a dog's life now, for good or for bad, but if Jesus is your Lord, your home is paradise. Guaranteed.

Such future hope sustains us in present hardship. So visualize this morning the greatest picture of heaven you can imagine. Then know that it's even greater: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him" (1 Corinthians 2:9). Rejoice: you're a child of the King. Where you are, as you are, right now. This is the good news of God.