RANDY ELROD

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Does God Love Me As Much As Taffy?

It was a dusky, permanent rose kind of rainy evening, the lights were low and golden and the haunting lyric and melody of the song Dear Friends (by the oddly named band Elbow) wrapped around my head and slowly reached into my soul.

You stuck a pin in my pile of sin
And this is a note for a road sign
Cuttin’ the breeze in this tennesee sundown
Came the sounds of the voices I know
I’ve been pondering trees
On the steeliest come down
But now a moment I’m home

I was sitting innocently in my easy chair looking deep into the big liquid brown eyes of my best friend Taffy who has been really sick the last few days with congestive heart failure, as she stared at me with pure love as only a canine can do, I couldn’t help but wonder…

Does God love me as much as Taffy?

Taffy is warm and cuddly.

Is God?

Taffy’s love is unconditional.

Is God’s?

Taffy cuddles me when I’m sick.

Does God?

Taffy greets me every day at the door with tail wagging furiously.

Does God?

I can see and touch Taffy.

I’ve never actually seen or touched God.

Or have I?

Did I see God last night?

Or was it Taffy?

25 responses to “Does God Love Me As Much As Taffy?”

  1. Jen C Avatar
    Jen C

    Thank you for posting this, Randy. I’ve been learning this recently too – to find God in the small details of life.

    I’ve found God in smell of ground beef browning on the stove, in the way a bite of home made bread feels on my tongue, in a barely opened tulip, in the bouncing 3 year old in my living room, in my husband’s grin. The more I look for God in the insignificant things, the easier it is to trust He’s in the big things too. I’m still learning to look for God, but by trying to keep my heart focused on finding God, the other things in life seem to sort themselves out. I’ve felt more comfortable being me all day and I’ve felt more blessed with rest in the evenings.

    I would say “Yes!” to your questions and the image of God waiting for you to get home with his tail wagging furiously is wonderful. I think if we allow God in our midst – He will create a special presence in our home. He is with us all the time, no matter what, but home is where we are most ourselves. Home is where we come to rest, to relax, to let our guard down and it seems like God would be most excited to meet us when we come home.

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Jen C, Sounds like you totally understand the contemplative life! Awesome, Jen!

      Reply
      1. Jen C Avatar
        Jen C

        @Randy Elrod, Thanks Randy, but it doesn’t feel like I totally understand. It seems like there’s always something to learn, whether I’m aware of it or not.

        And, I wasn’t entirely sure what you meant by contemplative life…so I asked my husband. He said we lean that way from having grown up Quaker. :)

        Reply
  2. Meredith Dunn Avatar
    Meredith Dunn

    I’ve known those questions. Actually, I ask them cyclically it seems. I expressed these and other questions to a life coach who responded, “What do you know is true? Uninfluenced by your feelings and emotions of today (because they’ll be different tomorrow), what do you know for certain about __________?” If I can remove the truth of God’s love for me from the way my day is going or how I feel about the circumstances in my life, and choose instead to see it through an unobscured lense, it becomes clear as day.

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Meredith Dunn, That is great advice! Thanks, Meredith!

      Reply
  3. Penny Hunter Avatar
    Penny Hunter

    We know you already knew this answer — but thanks for reminding the rest of us about how pure, simple and tangible the love of God is. Poignant and personal. Intimate and near. Like the warmth of Taffy resting close. Peace to you.

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Penny Hunter, Thanks, Penny!

      Reply
  4. Julie Kolb Avatar
    Julie Kolb

    The answer is, yes, God loves you just as much and more…It’s as simple as that…Please don’t over complicate God’s love for you..God IS love…

    And I love you, too…

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Julie Kolb, Thanks, Julie!

      Reply
  5. Christopher Phillips Avatar
    Christopher Phillips

    Great post, Randy. I’m especially intrigued and inspired by David’s comments too. I’ll add to this conversation an idea I heard last night at a lecture after our church’s Ash Wednesday service:

    Dr. Ashley Null, a world-renown Thomas Cranmer scholar, shared what we’ve all heard countless times before — that God’s love for us is indeed unconditional. He then introduced this metaphor that anyone with a dog can understand. I can relate because every time I walk through the door, my goldendoodle, Lucy, (http://bit.ly/ecHi8S) is there with a smile on her face as big as Texas, her tongue stretching down almost to the ground, and her tail wagging a million times a minute. No matter how frustrated I am, no matter what I’ve done, no matter the mistakes I’ve made — Lucy is always right there offering this same unconditional love. At least that’s how I perceive it. Dr. Ashley Null offered that what we receive from our dogs isn’t actually unconditional love; it’s unconditional affection and unconditional affirmation. He says, and now I agree, that love is more powerful and more complex than affection and affirmation.

    God always gives us His unconditional love, but, as I was reminded last night, he does not always give us unconditional affirmation. He loves with tough love sometimes. He ALWAYS loves us, but, since we are not perfect, He can’t always affirm our actions. My Lucy doesn’t care how I behave, who I offend or trample over, whether or not I feed the hungry and clothe the naked, and so on… God does care about those things though, and through processes that ultimately reflect His conditional loves for us, He sets us straight. If God blesses Amanda and me with children, I’m a hundred-percent certain that we will love them unconditionally, but I also know there will be many days when we have to show some tough love. Because of our unconditional love for them, we won’t be able to give those little angels unconditional affirmation. We must care for their eternal souls more than their temporary feelings.

    I know God loves me more than Lucy does. He loves me enough not to affirm everything I do.

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Christopher Phillips, Powerful thoughts, Christopher! Thanks so much!!

      i love the delineation between love, affection and affirmation.

      Enlightening.

      And as a veteran parent, there is indeed time for tough love among human families who love each other.

      Awesome!

      Reply
    2. Susan Wilkinson Avatar
      Susan Wilkinson

      @Christopher Phillips,

      Great points. I had a wonderful Australian Shepherd for 15 years. When she died I had two babies back to back and behold, the desire for a pet vanished for a while. Now my youngest is almost 3 and so it may be getting close to time for a dog again. I love babies and dogs for the same reason–they are a lot of work, but they show such unconditional love that it’s irresistible! (To me anyway!)

      And your GoldenDoodle is just beautiful, Christopher!

      Reply
      1. Randy Elrod Avatar
        Randy Elrod

        @Susan Wilkinson, Yes, it is!! Beautiful dog!

        Reply
  6. Susan Wilkinson Avatar
    Susan Wilkinson

    Lovely and true thoughts. Thank you, Randy and also thanks to David Teem. More lovely truths.

    I believe there is infinitely more for us to learn from Creation than most people, even Christians, realize. When we understand the nature of things created then we understand the nature of their Creator. If you think about it, we do not really know God at all except through Creation. His Word is eternal, but how do we grasp the truth of that Word but by our created souls and the souls of others?

    I also believe that this the the reason that God gave the work of ruling creation–not just or even primarily to be good stewards, but rather to know Him through His creation and in knowing Him to know our greatest happiness.

    Taffy–indeed all love and devotion we find, is merely a reflection of the beauty and love of God. I *love* these kinds of posts and discussions. Keep ’em coming! We thinking types really rely on artists to see and express the beauties of God that can be seen in creation. When creative thinkers and empathic creatives collaborate, the world is changed and the glory of God is revealed. Or is it really the other way around?

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Susan Wilkinson, Susan, your quote is amazing… “When creative thinkers and empathic creatives collaborate, the world is changed and the glory of God is revealed. Or is it really the other way around?”

      Thanks for enriching the conversation!

      Reply
      1. Susan Wilkinson Avatar
        Susan Wilkinson

        @Randy Elrod, Thanks, Randy. You have touched today on an area of passion for me–truth revealed in and through Creation. Through my work as a creative big-picture thinker I have come to see the necessity of thinkers and creatives working together to shape each other and complete the picture in the richest colors and hues. Thinkers provide the framework that allows the creatives to paint all the way to the edge.

        Reply
        1. Randy Elrod Avatar
          Randy Elrod

          @Susan Wilkinson, Another great quote: “Thinkers provide the framework that allows the creatives to paint all the way to the edge.”

          Reply
  7. Deana Avatar
    Deana

    Great thoughts Randy. Taffy is a sweetheart, sorry she’s been ill. The unconditional love and devotion of animals is an amazing thing. I’ve had pets my whole life and when I’m ill or blue, they are right there beside me. When I’m really blue, by border collie will sit on the couch next to me and sigh at me and wag his tail until I take him for a walk.

    I believe you saw and felt God as much through Taffy as we sometimes (I would hope) can through each other and other animals. For example. Two instances come to mind.

    1. I was at a friend’s stables on Tuesday waiting for my riding lesson and her barn cat jumped into my lap and started kneeding my face and nuzzling my neck. I had been apprehensive about getting back on a horse after 24 years and I was so absorbed in being loved on by this kitten that by the time my friend was ready for me, I was completely relaxed.

    2. On a human note, I sang in the All Lutheran Messiah for the first time in 2001. My son had just been diagnosed with epilepsy and my emotions were all over the place. I was actually very nervous about being part of this 200 person choir. I was so nervous in fact that my hands started shaking while we were lining up for our entrance. Another singer, a man I hardly knew, saw me – reached across the line and held my hand until it was time to go up.

    God is constantly pursueing us. He uses art, nature, music, animals, whatever it takes to touch our souls. He whispers secrets in the wind, kisses us with sunshine, and wraps us in the beauty of his creation every moment of every day. Being hopelessly female here but even certain scents envelop me in it’s warm embrace. I guess men could relate it their wives favorite perfume – same effect perhaps. Have you ever smelled rain, the cleanness of it pulls me in, like it’s his cologne or something and my soul rests. He’s the greatest lover ever Randy. Yes, you saw God and Taffy all rolled into one.

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Deana, Thanks, Deana. Beautiful!

      Reply
  8. David Teems Avatar
    David Teems

    Dogs are so much better at devotion than we are. We have much to learn from a creature who loves you better than you love yourself, who is devoted to your life more than she is her own. Forgive the shameless self promotion but here’s quote from my book on this subject—AND THEREBY HANGS A TALE.

    “Devotion is not a game to the dog. She takes it seriously. She is vigilant. She seems to know how it works, and why it is important. Devotion is visceral. It defines her. It makes the awe of nature visible, almost audible, telling quite profoundly of a Creator that somehow stashes bits of himself in all he creates; remembering that the Creator is a God who defines himself by one thing, and that is love. Every action he takes has one life behind it. It is the single motive in his heart.”

    Taffy has a lot to teach. In the economy of God, there is no “arbitrary.”

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @David Teems, Oh, David. I really, really needed your words this morning. What extraordinary thoughts!

      Thanks SO much for joining the conversation and please, please—you can quote your books ANYTIME on this blog!!

      Reply
      1. David Teems Avatar
        David Teems

        @Randy Elrod, You’re a sweetheart, Randy. I appreciate the way you elevate and nurture the creative spirit. [That is, how you kind of Taffy it along.]

        Reply
        1. Randy Elrod Avatar
          Randy Elrod

          @David Teems, As Marcel the Shell says, “It was my pleasure!”

          Reply
  9. Gail Hyatt Avatar
    Gail Hyatt

    Yes. He does. Taffy are His hands and feet … and His eyes.

    Reply
    1. Randy Elrod Avatar
      Randy Elrod

      @Gail Hyatt, Ahhhhh. Thanks, Gail. That means a lot! Somehow, I just need to get that truth wrapped around my head and all the way to my soul.

      Reply

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