Lauri and I enjoyed a little vacation time last week camping. Of course camping was a totally new experience for PennyPacker, our 12 week old yellow lab puppy, but she adapted quickly to our little home away from home on wheels, and she loved getting to spend so much time outdoors with us.
We were fortunate that the campground we chose was virtually empty, and since we had no one near us we let Penny run around loose for much of the first day. Oh she had a grand time! Everything was worth exploring… Everything was an adventure… and everything… was worth… EATING! Some of the things that dog either attempted to eat (because we caught her and stopped her) or actually ate (because we were just a bit too slow) — ew… I won’t gross you out, but yuck! It was like having a 2 year old toddler with us!
Just before dark, Penny began to act a bit strangely. First of all, she got hyper… I mean hyper like you would expect a 12 week old puppy could be — times 10! She was zooming all over the place… crashing into things, throwing toys in the air… bouncing off of us — she went nuts! So, we decided to take her for a walk — you know, wear her out. And it worked…she actually laid down and crashed hard, and no amount of effort could get her on her feet. So, as the dutiful pet owner, I scooped her up and carried her… and… she peed on me! Before we got her back to our camper her eyes had glazed over, her head was shaking from side to side and she was well beyond lethargic — something was wrong with her.
We were camping about an hour east of Cleveland and after doing a google search, and after talking about it, we decided to take Penny to a 24 hour veterinary hospital on the east side of Cleveland. A phone call at 10 PM told us to expect a 4-6 hour wait — great. But worry compelled us, and 11 PM saw us enter the vet hospital and approach the check-in desk. The vet technician took one look at Penny, all pathetically lethargic, eyes glazed, head shaking and asked us, “Is she difficult to rouse when she is sleeping?” We said, “yes,” “Is she having trouble controlling her bladder?” “Well, as a matter of fact, yes,” we said. Then, leaning toward us she whispered, “I have to ask you this confidentially… could she have had access to marijuana in your home?” “WHAT!” “NO!” I said. But then we realized… we are camping… and we had let her run all over the place… and she was finding all kinds of things to eat around the surrounding vacant campsites… OH NO!
After informing us that they saw multiple cases of this A DAY, they were kind enough to let us skip the wait and checked and tested her right away and sure enough… Penny… was high! Or at least she had been. We are such failures as pet-parents.
Lauri had been texting the kids keeping them informed about what was happening, and they were super worried about Penny. I texted them… “Penny got into Mom’s stash.” She’s been puffing the Magic Dragon — or… well… eating it, anyway.” (Just to set the record straight here… that was a joke… the only stash Lauri has is a ton of craft supplies.) The treatment? Let her sleep it off. By the next morning she was completely back to normal.
So here is what I have been pondering as I reflect on Penny’s drug-binge — as Christians, we have to be very careful about what we allow into our lives. The Ruler of this World will place all kinds of enticing things before us to tempt us. Things that lead us away from a godly lifestyle… things that harm our relationship with God… things that ultimately bring disaster to our lives under the guise that these things will somehow bring a satisfaction that never comes.
The Apostle Paul wrote, “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:15-16 How much better is it to follow the advice of Hebrews 12 over the lure of the world? “…let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” Hebrews 12:1b-2a
So learn a lesson from Penny. Just Say No to the influences of the sinful world around you… and keep your eyes right where they should be… on Jesus!
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