It was the darkest hour of the night when the neighbor’s big black dog made his way to the man’s back porch in search of food. So well did he blend with the darkness that he seemed to materialize from nowhere. He followed his nose to the cat’s dish and began helping himself.  

Inside the man’s house, a hand flicked a light switch and flooded the porch with light. Startled, the dog whirled with a growl and vanished into the night.  

A few days later, a kite went astray and landed on the neighbor’s property. Knowing his neighbor as a congenial person, the man crossed onto the other farm in search of the wayward kite.  

“Ruff, ruff—bow, wow wow!” roared a canine voice filled with righteous indignation. There was nothing furtive now about the handsome black dog bounding to intercept the trespasser. “What are you doing on my master’s farm?” he seemed to demand. “You don’t belong here; go home and stay there.”  

As the man carried the kite back to his side of the property line, he was reflective. Something in the manner of his neighbor’s dog reminded him of a dark human heart, a heart with secrets it prefers not to expose to the light. Whenever some hand turns the light of God’s Word on his darkness, he runs for cover. Yet strangely, this same person is eager to expose the shortcomings of others.  

The incongruity of such behavior is lost on the dog, but thoughtful Christians will recognize such inconsistencies in their own hearts and welcome the Holy Spirit to point His divine light where it is needed. What that light reveals will keep one too busy to be critical of others.  

Accusation’s tongue directed at another person’s fault may obscure
that the accuser is not doing what he ought.

From Paws on My Porch, by Gary Miller
© 2015 TGS International, PO Box 355, Berlin, Ohio 44610
Used by permission