A WOMAN , A DOG, HOPE

Her name is Edna from Pennsylvania. She is a senior woman who, every week after church at 11:00 am, she would take a cab and go to her local animal shelter and read the Sunday paper…for just one, special dog named Chester. Chester had been at the shelter for two years with no one to even take a second glance. He was an older dog, not so pretty or cuddly, like the puppies. Until Edna came along. She too was older, alone, with few people to even notice her. But, she found a purpose with Chester. The staff put out a folding chair for her so she could read the paper to Chester. Her slow, calm, kind voice was so comforting to him that he would lean up against her leg and they would both find peace. Edna lived in an apartment that did not allow dogs and she couldn’t afford to live anywhere else. So, instead of giving up, she did the next best thing..she saved up her money every week just so she could afford the taxi ride to the shelter. This went on for a year. No fanfare. No social media spotlight. No go fund me account. Just two old souls that found comfort in one another. Have you ever felt alone? Maybe with the loss of a loved one; a broken relationship; a disconnect with your own children; a CEO who had to make some difficult decisions and families no longer have a job? It was never Gods plan for people to go through life alone. We need each other, whether it has two legs, four legs, or meows. It’s called community. It can be in your neighborhood, your home group from church, an organization you volunteer with, a widow, a senior citizen, or, like Edna, an older dog that just needed someone to see him. But, what we all need the most, is our creator, who knows us, loves us, and has always seen us. Jesus. When you connect with Him, confessing your sins, repenting, and turning to him, He promises to never leave you or forsake you. He gives you a future and a HOPE. And HOPE is what Edna and Chester had in their shared friendship. One of the volunteers at the shelter told this story to the director who in turn called Edna’s apartment manager. The manager gave Edna a special exemption and Chester was finally able to go home with Edna. Now Edna can read the paper to Chester…every day. If you need HOPE today, if you need purpose today, if you need kindness today, reach out to Jesus and HE will be there. But, if you already know Jesus, maybe you could reach out to your community, to someone who needs to be seen, to an animal who is lonely….because the greatest medicine for depression or loneliness is when we take our eyes off of ourselves and look around us….to bring HOPE to others…in Jesus’ name. Thank you Edna and Chester for showing us all that a simple gesture of kindness can impact more than just ourselves…..