A number of folks I know have recently been concerned about their dogs--health issues (surgeries for various reasons or other treatments called for) or age-related issues, including a couple of friends who have had their beloved pets cross the rainbow bridge. All of this is hard to cope with emotionally, because these pets are more than pets--they are family, and we have concern and experience grief about those in our family. I still remember how much Susan and I cried when we needed to have our cat Boots put to sleep, four years ago last month. We'd had her nearly 13 years, and it took nearly four years before we felt emotionally ready to get another cat, the rambunctious Francisco. Our pets are truly vital parts of our lives, and we get "all the feels".
One of my friends who has had to say goodbye to a dog got him as a rescue animal--he was around 10, and most families with young kids weren't going to go for a dog of that age, so he was less likely to find a home. Bo lived another 4 years, and my friend absolutely agrees with the implied answer to a question I saw stated on a car window decal on our walk today: "Who rescued who?" You get a rescue animal to in essence save its life--and it turns out that rescue animal rescues yours. You acted to bless that animal, and that animal in turn blesses you--some say that you get blessed even more than you bless.
In a different way, this is a part of this story from Luke of feeding the 5000. Generosity, to make it possible for others to eat, results in everyone eating to satisfaction, and 12 baskets of leftovers. The ones who do the blessing of others become blessed themselves.
This is the miracle of the divine economy. We find that when we give to Jesus, or for Jesus, Jesus blesses the whole enterprise, such that those who are being helped are blessed, and those who do the helping find that blessings come back to them. That is not the motivation for doing it--we don't give in Jesus' name so that we get something in return; it's not an investment for our future. It is just the way that God does things, and just the way that blessing works.
We've all experienced this. We do a mission project, and we find that although we are the ones helping others, we find fulfillment we weren't expecting. When we engage in someone else's life in a concerned way, we learn things that can be transformational in our perspective on those in need. Our efforts to bring blessing to others in turn bless us right back. As the saying goes, we are "blessed to be a blessing"--but we find that in being that blessing we get blessed ourselves.
GOSPEL Luke 9:10-17
10 On their return the apostles told Jesus all they had done. He took them with him and withdrew privately to a city called Bethsaida. 11 When the crowds found out about it, they followed him; and he welcomed them, and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed to be cured.
12 The day was drawing to a close, and the twelve came to him and said, ‘Send the crowd away, so that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside, to lodge and get provisions; for we are here in a deserted place.’ 13 But he said to them, ‘You give them something to eat.’ They said, ‘We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.’ 14 For there were about five thousand men. And he said to his disciples, ‘Make them sit down in groups of about fifty each.’ 15 They did so and made them all sit down. 16 And taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 17 And all ate and were filled. What was left over was gathered up, twelve baskets of broken pieces.