“Rowdy’s Breath and God’s Love”
?I want to tell you about my dog, Rowdy. Now, I love this dog. But let me be honest with you—Rowdy’s breath is terrible. Like, really bad. Yet every day, when I get home, Rowdy runs to me full of joy. His tail is wagging, his eyes are bright, and he can’t wait to see me.
And what do I do? I pick him up and love on him. I hug him. I hold him close.
Now, yes—sometimes I have to turn my head because his breath is so bad. But his terrible breath doesn’t disqualify him from my love. If his breath was better, I wouldn’t have to turn my head. But either way, I will always pick him up and show him love.
?And as I thought about Rowdy, I realized how much like him we are with God.
There are parts of our lives that “smell terrible” to God—our sins, our weaknesses, our mistakes, the things we’re ashamed of. And yet, when we run to Him, when we come into His presence with joy, He doesn’t turn us away. He picks us up. He loves us.
Yes, there may be areas of our lives that God wants to help us clean up, just like I wish Rowdy’s breath was better. If those “stinky issues” were gone, there might be even greater closeness and freedom. But they never disqualify us from His love.
?Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”?It doesn’t say, “Once we had it all together, Christ died for us.” It says “while we were still sinners.”
And Ephesians 2:8–9 reminds us, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
?So, here’s the question for us: What areas of our lives “smell terrible” right now? Maybe it’s anger, gossip, secret sin, bitterness, unforgiveness—things we don’t want anyone to see. God’s love for us does not stop because of these things. But if we bring them to Him, He can clean them up. He can help us grow closer to Him.
And when you feel unworthy—because you’ve messed up—ask yourself this question:?“Would I feel more worthy if I had not sinned?”
If the answer is yes, then you’re basing your worth on your own works. But our worth is not in our works. It’s in Jesus. Jesus died for me. That’s what makes me worthy. His works, not mine.
?So run to Him today. Just like Rowdy runs to me, run to God—even if you’re ashamed. Even if you feel like your “breath” isn’t great. His arms are open. His love is waiting.