Monday, May 20, 2013

Lions ~ Lambs ~ Love



"The wolf and the lamb will feed together,
 and the lion will eat straw like the ox,..."
Isaiah 66:25 (NIV)

I strolled down the aisles of the grocery store and stopped to choose some veggies. I just couldn't decide what I wanted, so I walked to the other side of the aisle. Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted it. Right there in the middle of the grocery store––a lion! Not only a lion, but a lamb, a cat and her kittens, and a Basset Hound. And, they weren't in cages!

One of the store employees walked by, and I motioned to her. "Is tha-that a lion?" I sputtered. I repeated it. "Is tha-that a lion?" I couldn't seem to talk without sputtering. I glanced again––it really was a lion. Beside it, a cat lay still while the lion bathed it with its long tongue. Her kittens were crawling up and down the lion's back. And, right on top of the cat was a Basset Hound. The lamb was asleep, nestled near the lion's belly. They all seemed to be one big, loving family.

The clerk asked, "Are you alright? You seem to be unable to talk." She had that right! 

I finally found my words. "I'm just startled and a little frightened at the sight of this strange looking "family". With an angelic smile, she assured me it was a normal everyday sight in the store. 

With that image in my mind, the alarm blared! It was a dream! But, what a wonderful vision of the family of God––on heaven's side. If only we could be that loving to one another on this side of heaven––regardless of our differences.

"A new command I give to you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another" John 13:34 (NIV).

Walking with God daily, He enables us to show His love to those who differ from us. Even if the difference is as extreme as the lion from the lamb.