Trust Enough for a Belly Rub

God and I have been at arm’s length for the past few months. I’m convinced it’s all His fault, although I admit there’s a slight possibility I could be a tiny bit responsible. One of the first steps in fixing things was agreeing to work on this blog again. That means keeping my antenna up for when God nudges me with an idea. Once again, he’s using pets to plant seeds.

Every night at bedtime, Helen’s 10-year-old poodle Lexie has already claimed my pillow. When she hears me coming, she rolls over on her back for a belly rub. (Lexie, not Helen) It’s part of her canine nature, signs of submission and trust.

Cats seldom possess either quality.

Ralph (foreground), Lexie and Lana stake out their favorite
spaces on our bed. They especially enjoy it when we invade
“their” space to fold laundry.

One night last week, I noticed Mama Lana Cat curled up on the easy chair we recently moved to our bedroom. She’s been very skittish since her first litter, often running when anyone tries to pet her. That night, I decided to try a quick goodnight pat anyway. Surprisingly, counter to her nervous nature, she rolled over on her back so she could get a belly rub, too!   

Watching from the foot of the bed was Ralph. He is Lana’s son, twice her size, and on the way to becoming as big as a 1966 Volkswagen minibus. Following his mother’s lead, Ralph was already on his back waiting for his belly rub. What was going on? Is there something in the water? What’s with all of this sudden demand for belly-rubs?

That’s when the antenna started buzzing – Trust.

Trust is not something that comes easily for cats or for humans. Our innate sense of self-preservation gets in the way. So does ego. Our sense of independence, too. Trust puts our physical, emotional and financial well-being at risk.

Think about it for a minute – Who do you trust? How much do you trust them? And how does that level of trust affect those relationships?

As believers, we are asked to trust in God completely, without reservation. Jesus instructs us to have the faith of a child (Mt 18:3). Even more direct is a passage from my daily devotional spoken from Jesus’ point of view that reads, “Do you know what it is to feel sure that I can never fail you? As sure as you are that you still breathe?”

God asks us to overcome our innate human nature and trust him completely. That doesn’t mean we can sit a home and expect God to pay our bills and cook our dinner. It doesn’t mean immunity from physical danger or emotional heartbreak. But it does mean trusting that he is the author of every peak and valley in our lives, and to realize each peak and each valley has a specific purpose. Understanding this, he wants us to grow in faith from each experience. That’s trust.

Trust in God may be simple, but it’s not easy. The rewards are pretty cool, though. Even better than a belly rub!