Where Wild Shichons Roam...

We have the most adorable little dog you've ever seen!  Our little guy is a relatively new breed called a "Shichon" (or some say "zuchon").  He's a mix between a Shi Tzu and a Bichon Frise.  As you can imagine, he's a fluffly white and beige thing who has quite a lot of personality.  His formal name is Teddy Graham, but we've almost always called him "Bobo".

Bobo is a beggar. I can't imagine what goes on in his mind, but it is probably something like this: They are always eating...I want something to eat...why can't I get a snack?!...I want a snack!!...This is so unfair!  Any time this dog hears a piece of paper rattle, a drawer being opened, anything shaking in a box, or any other potentially food-related noise, he comes running.  He plants himself at the feet of the person making the noise and whines.  He sneezes. He sniffles. He barks. He nibbles.  He makes his presence known because all he wants out of life is the next bite.  He's a beggar, and he's not too proud to admit it.

Bobo was a Christmas present to our children a year ago.  They had wanted a dog for a good while, but Wayne and I were very reluctant to get one.  As a family, we are on the go a lot, and a dog seemed to be a bit too difficult for our equation.  But...Wayne's mother wanted to give the kids a dog.  Our daughter is allergic to most everything with fur, but Bobo has hair and does not shed or have the usual dander that most dog breeds have.  He's hypoallergenic.  So when we went to the dog boutique with Wayne's mother, Bobo was the only dog that would have worked with our daughter.  Because it was 2 days before Christmas, the only other dog there was the yippiest of chihuahuas - that wasn't going to happen, so we asked to see Bobo.  He was already 4 months old, and he had lived his entire life in a kennel cage.  His breeder was a wonderful lady, but the dogs stayed in their kennels most of the time, so when Bobo was let out to see us, he immediately ran to the corner and hid under a chair.  We got him, anyway, even though I had my doubts about his mental stability since he hadn't uttered a single sound, and he hid from us, shaking violently.

When we got Bobo home, he quickly found the closest piece of furniture under which to hide.  The kids spent a good 2 weeks just trying to get the dog out from under chairs and end tables.  He had the run of the entire house, but he chose to stay in "captivity" under things that would box him in.  He still hadn't uttered a sound.  I just knew we had purchased a mentally challenged dog.  Why else would he act like he was bound and in prison unless he had something wrong with him?  Then...all of a sudden...he barked.  He could speak!  And before too long, he ran out to play with the children.  He was a real dog after all!  The changed that occurred in that little dog in the first month was monumental.  He was a new creature if there ever was one!

I think about our little guy, and so many others come to mind.  Through the years of ministry in our own home and in the home of my parents when I was growing up, I have witnessed so many lives set free from bondage.  I have seen people delivered from habits and lifestyles that kept them imprisoned.  What surprises me, though, is not the way that God can bring immediate release to a captive heart--it's the way that a heart set free seems to want to keep walking in bondage.  John 8:36 says, "So if the Son [of God] sets you free, you will be free indeed."  Why is it, then, that people who know Jesus walk around still slaves? I have seen so many wonderful people go through miraculous deliverance of their souls only to go right back to their old ways....being hard on themselves...fighting depression...believing the lies of the enemy in their lives, telling them, "You are nothing. God doesn't care about you. This will be your life forever.  You will never gain this victory."  And so many of these precious people fall for this.  They believe those words that the enemy speaks over them and walk in those lies as if they were reality.  Just like our little dog, we now have the run of the house, so why do we want to act like we are still imprisoned in our hearts and minds?

Don't believe lies that tell you that you are a failure.  If you hear words in your heart and your mind that put you down and depress you, you can be sure that it is not God who is whispering in your ear.  God's voice brings abundant life!  His words bring encouragement and lift us up from fear and depression.  If you feel like you are still in chains, know that the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ have already purchased your freedom! 

So be free!  Come out of your prison cells and cozy up to the feast that God has set before you.  If you have accepted Jesus and the life that He has waiting for you, you are no longer a slave to the lies of the enemy--you are free to enjoy God's blessings. ....and you don't even have to beg!


Bobo's favorite food:  Well, anything really. BUT  he has been eating Rachael Ray's "Nutrish" dog food in the Chicken and Veggies flavor.  We like Rachael in this house, and I know that she loves her own dog fiercely, so we think her product must be pretty good.  Bobo also likes to snack on little carrots.  What does your dog like to eat?