Newsletter 51
Newsletter 51 from Maurice Sweetsur
Contents.
Teaching tip 37 - Children are special.
O.L. 60 - We are valuable to God.
Story - The healing of the paralytic (Mark 2. 1-12).
O.L. 61 - Overcoming gravity.
Did God create evil?
Things to learn from a dog.
T.T. 37 - Children are special.
Some people seem to live their lives as though the only things that matter are "What shall I eat?" "What shall I wear?' "What programmes are coming on Television?" etc. They don't really live, they only exist, just doing the same things day after day. Life is meant to be much more than this. Life should be a great exciting adventure! Life should be all about getting to know God, finding out His plans for your life, and then carrying them out. This is the secret of a really satisfying, purposeful life.
Here are seven reasons why life is meant to be an exciting adventure.
1. We are made in God's image. What is an image? If you look in a mirror, you see your image. You see someone just like yourself. In the same way, Genesis 1 v. 26 tells us that God made us like Himself. We are God-type creatures. When God looks on us, He doesn't say "You are like a monkey - - - or a dog - - - or a cat!" No. He says "You are like Me. I made you in my image." And what is God like? We only have to look at Jesus to see what God is like - totally good, loving, caring, forgiving etc. etc. That is how created us to be.
2. We are Unique. God has created everyone different. There is only one like you! There is not now, there never has been, or there never will be another person exactly like you. Everyone is unique. Even identical twins - although they may look the same on the outside - are different on the inside, in the ways they feel and think.
3. We are Eternal. God is eternal, and because He made us like Himself, we are also eternal. I am not talking about our bodies. They are like houses which we live in for a while. No. I am talking about the "real you", your personality - what the Bible calls your soul and spirit. This is eternal. And that means it will live forever and ever.
4. God made us to be His Friends. Many people wonder what life is all about. Where they came from, what they are doing here on planet earth, and where they are going? The answer is very simple. God created each one of us to be His friends, so that we can enjoy Him, and He can enjoy us , both now and forever. And the Bible tells us that through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, every one of us can become God's friend.
5. We are very Valuable to God. How much do you think you are worth? $1 thousand? $1 million? $1 billion? No, much more than that. In fact you can't put a price on just one human soul, because you are priceless, invaluable. If fact you are so valuable to God that He sent His Son to die for you. You are probably thinking "Oh, I know all about that." But, just think for a moment. If you were the only person who ever lived, God would still have sent Jesus to die for you! That's how valuable each one of you is to God.
6. God has a wonderful plan for your life. As I said earlier, life should be all about finding out God's plan for your life, and then carrying it out. And God's plans are far more wonderful than any you could think of for yourselves. Only doing what God wants you to do will bring real purpose and satisfaction to your life. And nothing is impossible. You can be or do ANYTHING that God wants you to be or do.
7. God wants you to be Victorious. Everyone has difficulties, hardships and troubles from time to time. But God doesn't want you to be defeated by them. No. He wants you to be victorious and rise above them. The Christian life is not one of defeat, but rather one of victory.
Note. There are three object lessons that can be used along with this teaching. These are :-
Point 1. We are made in God's image. Object Lesson 11 (Newsletters 4 and 45). "We are special." - Using 3 ropes. (Email me if you would like the diagram that goes with this).
Point 5. Object Lesson 60. We are very valuable to God.
Get an attractive round gift box, and fit a circular mirror of the same size into the bottom. At the appropriate time say "This is my treasure box. If you were to look in here, you would see something very, very, valuable. In fact, you will never see anything more valuable in your life." Then invite the children, one by one, to come and look into your treasure box. "That is right , you see yourself, and there is nothing more valuable than that!"
Point 7. God want's you to be victorious. Object Lesson 6 (Newsletters 3 and 45) "Defeating Giants." - Using 2 curved cards. (Email me if you would like the diagram that goes with this).
Story - The healing of the paralytic (Mark 2. 1-12.).
I usually tell this story using "Ali Bongo's Square to cross" which is obtainable from Children's Ministry Today ( www.childrensministry.org ).A good alternative is to tell it from the viewpoint of the paralytic:-
Jimmy woke up and groaned "Oh no" he said, "It was only a dream." In his dream Jimmy had been having a great time running and jumping about in the hills above Capernaum. Jimmy had groaned because this was something that he couldn't do now. When he was much younger there was nothing that Jimmy liked better than to explore the hills above his home town, but then, little by little, his whole body began to get stiffer and stiffer until it reached the point where he couldn't even climb out of his bed mat on his own. He was completely paralysed.
Bad as things were for Jimmy, they could have been worse, because he had four good friends who came to visit him every day, do his housework, and sometimes carry him out on his mat to go for a picnic. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.
"Come in" called Jimmy, and his four friends, Joe, Matt, Andy and Pete entered his house.
"You look rather glum" said Joe. "Is anything wrong?"
Jimmy told his friends about the dream he had just had. "That is something that I will never be able to do again" he concluded.
"We believe you will" declared Matt. "We believe that God will heal you, and you will then be able to do all the running and jumping you like."
Jimmy replied, "I do believe God does heal people, but if He was going to heal me, I am sure He would have done it a long time ago."
"No, you don't understand" said Andy "Jesus, who people say is the Christ, sent from God, is here in Capernaum. In fact he is having a meeting in a house just down the road. We believe that if we take you to Jesus, he will heal you."
"I am not so sure of that" replied Jimmy.
"Just trust us" said Pete.
And so Jimmy's four friends carried the paralysed man, on his mat, down the road to the house where Jesus was. But when they got there Jimmy groaned "I knew this was no good, you will never be able to get me anywhere near Jesus with all this crowd." Jimmy had a point. Jesus was so popular, that the whole house was crammed full of people. Those who couldn't get in were trying to peer through the windows or push their way in through the door.
"We're not giving up now" said Joe. "I have a plan."
Jimmy lay back on his mat and watched in amazement as his friends carried him round to the back of the house, climbed up the stairs onto the roof and began to pull up the roof tiles.
"What on earth will the owner of this house think" thought Jimmy, as the hole in the roof got larger and larger. "We will all get in big trouble."
Soon the hole was large enough, and the four men lowered Jimmy, still on his mat, down through the hole, right to where Jesus was teaching the crowd.
"Oh no" thought Jimmy. "It is me that will get in trouble for that hole, because I am down here and my friends are still on the roof." But suddenly Jimmy cheered up. Jesus was looking straight at him, and was smiling. He didn't seem to mind about the hole. Jimmy thought "I think I am going to be healed after all. Jesus will probably heal me and tell me to get up and walk."
But Jesus looked at Jimmy and said, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
Jimmy groaned. "What have my sins got to do with anything. Doesn't Jesus realise that I am here because I need to be healed?" But Jesus doesn't make mistakes. He knew the paralysed man needed to be healed, but he saw an even greater need - to have his sins forgiven and get right with God.
Suddenly there was a distraction. Some of the religious leaders in the crowd became angry with Jesus, thinking to themselves "Only God can forgive sins. Jesus is making himself equal with God by telling this man that his sins are forgiven."
But Jesus knew what they were thinking. He turned to them and said "What is easier for me to say 'Your sins are forgiven' or 'Take up your mat and walk'? But I have said this that you may know that I have authority on earth to forgive sins." Wow, there Jesus went again, claiming equality with God.
Jesus turned back to the paralytic and said "Take up your mat and walk." Jimmy felt strength seep into his whole body. He began to move his arms and legs. He sat up, then stood up. He picked up his mat and walked out - to the thunderous applause and cries of amazement from the crowd.
Conclusion.
When the four friends lowered the paralytic through the hole in the roof, the Bible says "When Jesus saw their faith, he said "Son your sins are forgiven" and then later on "Take up your mat and walk."
What does the Bible mean by saying 'their' faith? That's right. Jesus saw the faith of the paralytic's four friends. The man was forgiven and healed because of his friends' faith. We can bring our friends to Jesus today - through prayer - and ask Him to meet their needs, if we have a determined, confident faith in Jesus, that He will do what He has promised to do.
What does the Bible mean by saying Jesus 'saw' their faith? How can you see faith? Surely faith is something inside us. Isn't It what we believe? Yes, it certainly is what we believe, but if our faith is genuine, our words and actions will reflect what we believe. Jesus saw what those men did. He saw the great efforts they had gone to get their friend to him. And that is the sort of determined, stop at nothing, faith that Jesus rewards. If we really believe Jesus will meet our needs or the needs of our friends or relatives, then we will be like those four men and our words and actions will match up to what we believe.
Note. Object Lesson 2 (Newsletters 1 and 48) "Faith (A water experiment)" is a good complement to this lesson. Or you could use O.L. 61, as described below.
Object Lesson 61 - Overcoming gravity.
A miracle occurs when God overrules or suspends one of the natural laws of the universe. In this illustration you are able to overcome one of the natural laws, namely gravity, with another law - centrifugal force.
Note. It is actually the precise balance between these two that keeps the earth in place year after year, and prevents it crashing towards the sun or hurtling off into outer space.
Effect. For obvious reasons, this is best done outside. Fill a bucket about three quarters full with water. Demonstrate how you can overcome the law of gravity by swinging the bucket up and over your head a few times. The centrifugal force you generate (just like a spin dryer) will be enough to overcome gravity and stop the water falling out of the bucket, even when it is completely upside-down above your head.
Tip. Obviously you will need to practice this beforehand. Start by swinging your water bucket gently to and fro across your body. When you have reached a reasonable speed, you will be ready for your complete swings - then going as fast as you can until you are ready to stop. With a little practice, not one drop of water should spill out.
Did God create evil?
Did God create everything that exists? Does evil exist? Did God create
evil? A University professor at a well known institution of higher learning challenged his students with this question. "Did God create everything that exists?"
A student bravely replied, "Yes he did!" "God created everything?" The professor asked.
"Yes sir, he certainly did," the student replied. The professor answered, "If God created everything; then God created evil. And, since evil exists, and according to the principal that our works define who we are, then we can assume God is evil."
The student became quiet and did not respond to the professor's
hypothetical definition. The professor, quite pleased with himself, boasted to the students
that he had proven once more that the Christian faith was a myth.
Another student raised his hand and said, "May I ask you a question, professor?"
"Of course", replied the professor.
The student stood up and asked, "Professor, does cold exist?"
"What kind of question is this? Of course it exists. Have you never
been cold?" The other students snickered at the young man's question. The young
man replied, "In fact sir, cold does not exist. According to the laws of physics, what we consider cold is in reality the absence of heat. Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-460 F) is the total absence of heat; and all matter becomes inert and
incapable of reaction at that temperature. Cold does not exist. We have created
this word to describe how we feel if we have no heat."
The student continued, "Professor, does darkness exist?"
The professor responded, "Of course it does."
The student replied, "Once again you are wrong sir, darkness does not exist either. Darkness is in reality the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact, we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each
color. You cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a certain space is? You measure the amount of light present. Isn't this correct? Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there is no light present."
Finally the young man asked the professor, "Sir, does evil exist?"
Now uncertain, the professor responded, "Of course, as I have already said. We see it everyday. It is in the daily examples of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.
To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist, sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man
does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat, or the darkness that comes when there is no light."
The professor sat down.
The young man's name -- Albert Einstein
THINGS TO LEARN FROM A DOG
~ Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
~ Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
~ When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
~ When it's in your best interest, practice obedience.
~ Let others know when they've invaded your territory.
~ Take naps and stretch before rising.
~ Run, romp and play daily.
~ Eat with gusto and enthusiasm.
~ Be loyal.
~ Never pretend to be something you're not.
~ If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
~ When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
~ Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
~ Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
~ On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.
~ When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
~ No matter how often you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and pout. Run right back and make friends.
~ Bond with your pack.
~ Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
Contents.
Teaching tip 37 - Children are special.
O.L. 60 - We are valuable to God.
Story - The healing of the paralytic (Mark 2. 1-12).
O.L. 61 - Overcoming gravity.
Did God create evil?
Things to learn from a dog.
T.T. 37 - Children are special.
Some people seem to live their lives as though the only things that matter are "What shall I eat?" "What shall I wear?' "What programmes are coming on Television?" etc. They don't really live, they only exist, just doing the same things day after day. Life is meant to be much more than this. Life should be a great exciting adventure! Life should be all about getting to know God, finding out His plans for your life, and then carrying them out. This is the secret of a really satisfying, purposeful life.
Here are seven reasons why life is meant to be an exciting adventure.
1. We are made in God's image. What is an image? If you look in a mirror, you see your image. You see someone just like yourself. In the same way, Genesis 1 v. 26 tells us that God made us like Himself. We are God-type creatures. When God looks on us, He doesn't say "You are like a monkey - - - or a dog - - - or a cat!" No. He says "You are like Me. I made you in my image." And what is God like? We only have to look at Jesus to see what God is like - totally good, loving, caring, forgiving etc. etc. That is how created us to be.
2. We are Unique. God has created everyone different. There is only one like you! There is not now, there never has been, or there never will be another person exactly like you. Everyone is unique. Even identical twins - although they may look the same on the outside - are different on the inside, in the ways they feel and think.
3. We are Eternal. God is eternal, and because He made us like Himself, we are also eternal. I am not talking about our bodies. They are like houses which we live in for a while. No. I am talking about the "real you", your personality - what the Bible calls your soul and spirit. This is eternal. And that means it will live forever and ever.
4. God made us to be His Friends. Many people wonder what life is all about. Where they came from, what they are doing here on planet earth, and where they are going? The answer is very simple. God created each one of us to be His friends, so that we can enjoy Him, and He can enjoy us , both now and forever. And the Bible tells us that through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, every one of us can become God's friend.
5. We are very Valuable to God. How much do you think you are worth? $1 thousand? $1 million? $1 billion? No, much more than that. In fact you can't put a price on just one human soul, because you are priceless, invaluable. If fact you are so valuable to God that He sent His Son to die for you. You are probably thinking "Oh, I know all about that." But, just think for a moment. If you were the only person who ever lived, God would still have sent Jesus to die for you! That's how valuable each one of you is to God.
6. God has a wonderful plan for your life. As I said earlier, life should be all about finding out God's plan for your life, and then carrying it out. And God's plans are far more wonderful than any you could think of for yourselves. Only doing what God wants you to do will bring real purpose and satisfaction to your life. And nothing is impossible. You can be or do ANYTHING that God wants you to be or do.
7. God wants you to be Victorious. Everyone has difficulties, hardships and troubles from time to time. But God doesn't want you to be defeated by them. No. He wants you to be victorious and rise above them. The Christian life is not one of defeat, but rather one of victory.
Note. There are three object lessons that can be used along with this teaching. These are :-
Point 1. We are made in God's image. Object Lesson 11 (Newsletters 4 and 45). "We are special." - Using 3 ropes. (Email me if you would like the diagram that goes with this).
Point 5. Object Lesson 60. We are very valuable to God.
Get an attractive round gift box, and fit a circular mirror of the same size into the bottom. At the appropriate time say "This is my treasure box. If you were to look in here, you would see something very, very, valuable. In fact, you will never see anything more valuable in your life." Then invite the children, one by one, to come and look into your treasure box. "That is right , you see yourself, and there is nothing more valuable than that!"
Point 7. God want's you to be victorious. Object Lesson 6 (Newsletters 3 and 45) "Defeating Giants." - Using 2 curved cards. (Email me if you would like the diagram that goes with this).
Story - The healing of the paralytic (Mark 2. 1-12.).
I usually tell this story using "Ali Bongo's Square to cross" which is obtainable from Children's Ministry Today ( www.childrensministry.org ).A good alternative is to tell it from the viewpoint of the paralytic:-
Jimmy woke up and groaned "Oh no" he said, "It was only a dream." In his dream Jimmy had been having a great time running and jumping about in the hills above Capernaum. Jimmy had groaned because this was something that he couldn't do now. When he was much younger there was nothing that Jimmy liked better than to explore the hills above his home town, but then, little by little, his whole body began to get stiffer and stiffer until it reached the point where he couldn't even climb out of his bed mat on his own. He was completely paralysed.
Bad as things were for Jimmy, they could have been worse, because he had four good friends who came to visit him every day, do his housework, and sometimes carry him out on his mat to go for a picnic. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.
"Come in" called Jimmy, and his four friends, Joe, Matt, Andy and Pete entered his house.
"You look rather glum" said Joe. "Is anything wrong?"
Jimmy told his friends about the dream he had just had. "That is something that I will never be able to do again" he concluded.
"We believe you will" declared Matt. "We believe that God will heal you, and you will then be able to do all the running and jumping you like."
Jimmy replied, "I do believe God does heal people, but if He was going to heal me, I am sure He would have done it a long time ago."
"No, you don't understand" said Andy "Jesus, who people say is the Christ, sent from God, is here in Capernaum. In fact he is having a meeting in a house just down the road. We believe that if we take you to Jesus, he will heal you."
"I am not so sure of that" replied Jimmy.
"Just trust us" said Pete.
And so Jimmy's four friends carried the paralysed man, on his mat, down the road to the house where Jesus was. But when they got there Jimmy groaned "I knew this was no good, you will never be able to get me anywhere near Jesus with all this crowd." Jimmy had a point. Jesus was so popular, that the whole house was crammed full of people. Those who couldn't get in were trying to peer through the windows or push their way in through the door.
"We're not giving up now" said Joe. "I have a plan."
Jimmy lay back on his mat and watched in amazement as his friends carried him round to the back of the house, climbed up the stairs onto the roof and began to pull up the roof tiles.
"What on earth will the owner of this house think" thought Jimmy, as the hole in the roof got larger and larger. "We will all get in big trouble."
Soon the hole was large enough, and the four men lowered Jimmy, still on his mat, down through the hole, right to where Jesus was teaching the crowd.
"Oh no" thought Jimmy. "It is me that will get in trouble for that hole, because I am down here and my friends are still on the roof." But suddenly Jimmy cheered up. Jesus was looking straight at him, and was smiling. He didn't seem to mind about the hole. Jimmy thought "I think I am going to be healed after all. Jesus will probably heal me and tell me to get up and walk."
But Jesus looked at Jimmy and said, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
Jimmy groaned. "What have my sins got to do with anything. Doesn't Jesus realise that I am here because I need to be healed?" But Jesus doesn't make mistakes. He knew the paralysed man needed to be healed, but he saw an even greater need - to have his sins forgiven and get right with God.
Suddenly there was a distraction. Some of the religious leaders in the crowd became angry with Jesus, thinking to themselves "Only God can forgive sins. Jesus is making himself equal with God by telling this man that his sins are forgiven."
But Jesus knew what they were thinking. He turned to them and said "What is easier for me to say 'Your sins are forgiven' or 'Take up your mat and walk'? But I have said this that you may know that I have authority on earth to forgive sins." Wow, there Jesus went again, claiming equality with God.
Jesus turned back to the paralytic and said "Take up your mat and walk." Jimmy felt strength seep into his whole body. He began to move his arms and legs. He sat up, then stood up. He picked up his mat and walked out - to the thunderous applause and cries of amazement from the crowd.
Conclusion.
When the four friends lowered the paralytic through the hole in the roof, the Bible says "When Jesus saw their faith, he said "Son your sins are forgiven" and then later on "Take up your mat and walk."
What does the Bible mean by saying 'their' faith? That's right. Jesus saw the faith of the paralytic's four friends. The man was forgiven and healed because of his friends' faith. We can bring our friends to Jesus today - through prayer - and ask Him to meet their needs, if we have a determined, confident faith in Jesus, that He will do what He has promised to do.
What does the Bible mean by saying Jesus 'saw' their faith? How can you see faith? Surely faith is something inside us. Isn't It what we believe? Yes, it certainly is what we believe, but if our faith is genuine, our words and actions will reflect what we believe. Jesus saw what those men did. He saw the great efforts they had gone to get their friend to him. And that is the sort of determined, stop at nothing, faith that Jesus rewards. If we really believe Jesus will meet our needs or the needs of our friends or relatives, then we will be like those four men and our words and actions will match up to what we believe.
Note. Object Lesson 2 (Newsletters 1 and 48) "Faith (A water experiment)" is a good complement to this lesson. Or you could use O.L. 61, as described below.
Object Lesson 61 - Overcoming gravity.
A miracle occurs when God overrules or suspends one of the natural laws of the universe. In this illustration you are able to overcome one of the natural laws, namely gravity, with another law - centrifugal force.
Note. It is actually the precise balance between these two that keeps the earth in place year after year, and prevents it crashing towards the sun or hurtling off into outer space.
Effect. For obvious reasons, this is best done outside. Fill a bucket about three quarters full with water. Demonstrate how you can overcome the law of gravity by swinging the bucket up and over your head a few times. The centrifugal force you generate (just like a spin dryer) will be enough to overcome gravity and stop the water falling out of the bucket, even when it is completely upside-down above your head.
Tip. Obviously you will need to practice this beforehand. Start by swinging your water bucket gently to and fro across your body. When you have reached a reasonable speed, you will be ready for your complete swings - then going as fast as you can until you are ready to stop. With a little practice, not one drop of water should spill out.
Did God create evil?
Did God create everything that exists? Does evil exist? Did God create
evil? A University professor at a well known institution of higher learning challenged his students with this question. "Did God create everything that exists?"
A student bravely replied, "Yes he did!" "God created everything?" The professor asked.
"Yes sir, he certainly did," the student replied. The professor answered, "If God created everything; then God created evil. And, since evil exists, and according to the principal that our works define who we are, then we can assume God is evil."
The student became quiet and did not respond to the professor's
hypothetical definition. The professor, quite pleased with himself, boasted to the students
that he had proven once more that the Christian faith was a myth.
Another student raised his hand and said, "May I ask you a question, professor?"
"Of course", replied the professor.
The student stood up and asked, "Professor, does cold exist?"
"What kind of question is this? Of course it exists. Have you never
been cold?" The other students snickered at the young man's question. The young
man replied, "In fact sir, cold does not exist. According to the laws of physics, what we consider cold is in reality the absence of heat. Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-460 F) is the total absence of heat; and all matter becomes inert and
incapable of reaction at that temperature. Cold does not exist. We have created
this word to describe how we feel if we have no heat."
The student continued, "Professor, does darkness exist?"
The professor responded, "Of course it does."
The student replied, "Once again you are wrong sir, darkness does not exist either. Darkness is in reality the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact, we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each
color. You cannot measure darkness. A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a certain space is? You measure the amount of light present. Isn't this correct? Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there is no light present."
Finally the young man asked the professor, "Sir, does evil exist?"
Now uncertain, the professor responded, "Of course, as I have already said. We see it everyday. It is in the daily examples of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.
To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist, sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man
does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat, or the darkness that comes when there is no light."
The professor sat down.
The young man's name -- Albert Einstein
THINGS TO LEARN FROM A DOG
~ Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.
~ Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
~ When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
~ When it's in your best interest, practice obedience.
~ Let others know when they've invaded your territory.
~ Take naps and stretch before rising.
~ Run, romp and play daily.
~ Eat with gusto and enthusiasm.
~ Be loyal.
~ Never pretend to be something you're not.
~ If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
~ When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
~ Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
~ Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
~ On hot days, drink lots of water and lay under a shady tree.
~ When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
~ No matter how often you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and pout. Run right back and make friends.
~ Bond with your pack.
~ Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.
posted by Maurice Sweetsur @ 1:26 PM
