Dean K. Anderson - Teen Bible Study

Teen Bible Study

One evening at one of our weekly Teen Bible Studies, our session focused on the topic of prayer. We were in the midst of an edifying discussion when I asked these high school kids how they heard the voice of God in their lives. Some responded, "Through Scripture," Others said, "Through other people." One teen said God spoke to her in the unfolding of the events and situations in her life.

But there was one quiet freshman, Aaron, who rarely spoke aloud in the group of thirty-five or so. He offered the following food for thought: "It's hard to hear the voice of God in our lives - especially since most of us do not hear Him speak audibly to us. But I've come to see that my relationship with God is a lot like my relationship with my dog.

"You see, my dog is one of my most loyal friends. He's there for me when I come home and feel like paying attention to Him and playing with him, and he delights in my choice to be with him.

"He is also there for me, when I'm too tired or busy to pay attention to him, lying quietly, still loving me, and just patiently waiting for me to choose to pay attention to him.

And then there are the times when I am really troubled, confused or upset, and I sit in my room and talk to my dog (and sometimes even cry to him.)

Now I know that sounds crazy, but I can tell you, I am sure he knows what I am saying. He sits quietly and close to me and his eyes look straight into mine. It's like he really understands me. Sometimes he'll nuzzle his nose up under my hand, and sometimes he'll put his paw on me, but most of the time, he just sits there and looks at me . . . and you know, that's really comforting, just to know he's there.

"And for me, God is a lot like my dog. He loves it when we choose to be with Him, waits for us - still loving us - when we're too busy or tired or when we forget or when we intentionally ignore Him. Even though He can't speak back to us the way we would like to be able to hear his voice, he is there for us and can let us know in different ways that He understands us and loves us.

As Aaron finished explaining his powerful analogy, he closed by saying, "And, I think that it is no coincidence that the word dog, spelled backwards, is GOD!"