The Lord God is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer’s feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills. – Habakkuk 3:19

Wednesday afternoon, doing a little yard work, I stopped briefly to see if Max was in the mood for one of our traditional “on the front steps” selfies.

The answer of course was, “No!” Followed by, “Come on, dad. You know I don’t like it when you make me take a selfie.” Which is exactly what makes such photographs all the more interesting.

First he tried looking over his shoulder, then down at his paws… before simply turning his head as far away from me as possible. I didn’t even warn him ahead of time, he just saw my arm coming out with the camera and instinctively turned away.

Eventually Max acquiesced and we grabbed a couple of shots. I’m not sure why I make him do this, just that he is such a wonderful dog and he always takes a great picture.

Also, at a deeper level, in times fraught with concern and anxiety a touch of the whimsical can be more than a distraction, it can be healing.

Like a patch of wildflowers springing up in the middle of a scene of destruction after a tornado, or the laughter of a child in the hospital waiting room, or the hug of a close friend.

Affirmation of Perspective

A selfie with Max is a kind of affirmation. At church every Sunday we include an “Affirmation of Faith;” well, Max is an Affirmation of Perspective, a reminder that life and gratitude are essential and that goodness is fundamental.

Or, as the prophet Habakkuk put it (Habakkuk 3:17-19):

Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls—
Yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.

The Lord God is my strength…

This is why gratitude is not only an article of faith it is a means to faithfulness. Faithfulness to the fundamental truth that this life is a gift, regardless. What happens today, and then tomorrow, has everything to do with how we receive that gift, and what we do with it.

The ball, the opportunity, the privilege to live, the next day (or week, or year, or 40 years) is in our court. – DEREK

The series: