Suddenly!

Last week contained a series of unwelcome sudden events.
The beginning of the drama occurred on Monday evening
as Glen was walking Jake around the lake. They stopped to
hang out a bit with a couple of small dogs and then continued
on their way. By now it was dusk. Suddenly a dog that was
off leash discovered Jake and made a bee line over the 40 or
so yards that separated them. She was a dog with a mission as
she crashed into Jake, got her teeth into his skin about mid-thigh
and then pulled ripping the skin off of the leg down past the
knee and around the leg-- almost 360 degrees. Glen went ballistic
as the dog circled around for another try. Somehow he got them
separated and we got Jake in the car and headed for the ER.
Our plans for the evening were suddenly re-arranged. Jake
was sedated and then operated on the following day. It took two
hours to clean and sew his skin back on. He is pretty much crated
for the next three weeks and we had a few rough days after we
got him home. The skin is tight where it has been re-attached.
Jake is sneaky about wanting to run upstairs and crawl under the
bed but even so the areas sowed together are beginning to heal.

The episode reminded me of just how quickly our lives can change.
Paul speaks of this in 1Thessalonians 5:2-3:

"For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord
will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying
'peace and safety,' then sudden destruction will come upon
them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they
will not escape."

"Peace and Safety" seem to be much in the news these days. Can it
be that we are nearing the end of all things? Can it be that the rapture
is just around the corner. The persecuted Thessalonian church was
so concerned about these things that Paul wrote two letters to them
which are centered around the Day of the Lord and the return of our
Lord. It will happen suddenly.
Reader, are you ready to meet Jesus face to face?