Yesterday was Gail's birthday and we just received a puppy through the generosity of one of our students and are presently up through the night tending him as if he were a new baby. He’s a lot of fun…and a lot of work! It is said that the only animal that will respond to mankind without a reward is a dog. Man’s best friend, the dog, needs only a pat on the head to be happy and obedient. While that is a reward in itself, food, and/or negative reinforcement are not necessary to train a dog. All it takes is praise, a pleasant tone of voice, and a pat on the head.

When Gail was in her last days with us and unable to move very much at all, I would come home from work and bend over her bed and hold her to myself. I would take her arm and place it over my back so she could hug me back. For the past few years she and I would often say to one another, “You’re doing so good in your life.” As I would hug her in this way I would say to her, “You’re doing so good.” I meant that she was being a great example of faith and patience as she suffered through her trial.

 It was about three days before she went to be with the Lord and on this day particular day when I hugged her the kids were standing around and they said to her, “Mom, tell Dad that he’s doing so good.” As they kept coaching her she mustered the words, “You’re going to do so good.” At the same time she patted me on the back with what strength she had left. Gail was saying to me that after her departure she had confidence that I would continue, with God’s help, to be good for the family. She was assuring me and the kids that I would not fail them, and that all of us would be just fine. I cannot express how much that meant to me, and how it will continue to mean to me! I will go on in the encouragement of those words for many years. I rest satisfied that our thirty years together were filled mutual “pats on the back,” but this last one is a healing balm. All I’ve ever wanted was a pat on the back.

Is it true that our greatest desire; our deepest need, is a “pat on the head”? Whether from a parent or an employer or an admired friend, nothing makes us perk up and wag our tail more than the acceptance and praise of another. When a parent praises a child he or she is saying to that young one, “You are doing so good in your life. I accept you and am pleased with you. I am, at this moment, at rest with you. I love you.”

However wonderful approval is from another person, there is an even greater commendation—that of a holy God. The most wonderful words one will ever hear are to come from the Lord Jesus Christ at the end of life and while standing at the Judgment, “Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your Master.” And, “Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” (Matthew 25).

It should be solemnly stated that only a few hear these comforting words. The others must hear, “Depart from Me, you accursed into the everlasting fire…”  What’s the difference, and how can you be assured that the Savior will welcome you at the end of your life? Jesus is the difference. He offered Himself on the cross as the only way to God. The Father said of Jesus, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” When you surrender yourself to Him and believe that what He accomplished in His death for you, then you are forgiven for your sins and you are also pleasing to God. You become your Father’s child and are safe with Jesus in heaven. You have most certainly passed from death to life and will be welcomed into the kingdom. “Well done, good and faithful slave,” is the best pat on the back you will ever receive!

Thank you for your friendship and for walking through this valley with us.