Lent 2022, Day 33

 

Jesus’ words from today’s BiOY reading:

⁴⁸ Then he said to them, “Whoever welcomes this little child in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.”

Luke 9:48 

It’s easy, in theory, for me to be welcoming, and for years our home was a hub of activity. But the past couple of years have made my social reticence/awkwardness more pronounced and easier to embrace. And now, after 2 years of non-use, my social skills have declined, and even some of my “easy” social interactions have become a bit of a chore, sometimes even a source of dread or anxiety—which has shrunk my already-shrunken world considerably. Now that things are opening up again, having a dog who’s as spiky as she is needy does not help—encountering humans now brings a whole new level of stress and need for preparation. 

The easiest route, of course, would be to simply avoid encountering humans. But the problem there is that I believe we were created to live in community—and also I’ve discovered that a solitary me is not a pleasant me. While Libby I very much like the socially limited life, we’ve found that we both actually NEED people, no matter how much we might bristle at that thought.

So with this reminder, on this final week of Lent before Holy Week, I will focus on being welcoming and warm and open to actual humans, not just needy dogs. And I expect I might even encounter God along the way.
 

#lent2022 #bibleinoneyear #rescuedogsofinstagram #repentandbelieve

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