Bulldogs, Puppycats, and Big Green Beetles

For those of you that came late to my ramblings, allow me to give you a little bit of Fin backstory. Fin was found in a field, rescued by a young man, and taken to the Smith County Animal Clinic where my youngest son Dylan, worked during high school. He was brought in most pitiful, tiny, with his umbilical cord still attached. Dr. Dixon declared him to be 1-2 days old, and at low probability for survival, something my son, the knight in shining armor, could not tolerate. Home the little guy came as I ran to gather syringes for feeding, a crate, heating pad, and a little stuffed animal that purred to give him company. He lived, he grew and he was raised by wolves...well to over protective, fussy bulldogs. Lola became his mama and AnnaBelle is his cranky auntie. The poor little guy is a bottle fed, erasable, confused puppycat, that has many doglike traits. But occasionally his cat instincts kick in and it is most fun to watch him navigate the world as a cat. Today was one of those days.

Today, many of these were flying around our yard. Large, shiny green bugs that following a Google search were deemed to be a form of June bug like beetle. Fin was fascinated. He wanted them, and he wanted them bad. His inner hunter kicked in. He started, firstly, on the top of the fence. I am assuming he needed a bird's eye view to assess and patrol his prey. Then he began following the beetles throughout the yard and near the porch in his stealthy way, attempting to sneak up on his targeted critters. Every time he would be ready to pounce on them they would flee. 

   

Then something quite odd, yet interesting happened. His inner werido kicked in. And he tried his cute, come hither pose, under the table in a an unassuming manner. Funny thing. The bugs came to him. He even managed to get a paw on one.

Being a weirdo is part of being in the Mowdy clan. We are all quite different. Being Christian is no different. We are called to be different and peculiar. As I study, that word "peculiar" rings in my head, somewhere in the back part where my random biblical studies lie. I had to go back to the King James Version to find the passages that were ringing in my head. One passage in Titus says, "Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works." Another passage in 1 Peter, "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;" In searching I find that other version of scripture cage the phrase to chosen or called out. the word, "periousious" (Greek) really means to be chosen, hand-picked to belong.  In our belonging to God, we are different that the ones that do not. it makes us a weirdo for God's clan.

What good does it do to be a weirdo? Well, in Fins' case, he was much more attractive to what he wanted to catch because the bugs came to see what was going on with this weird, furry, blob on the pavement rolling around. For the people of the Mowdy clan, it means people know who we are and who we belong to. The same holds true for the weirdos of God's clan, we are known by whom we belong to, as well as attracting others to come and see. 

Friends. this is the ticket to discipleship, evangelical,ism and even church growth...BE WEIRD. stop trying to look and act like everyone else. Just be who God created you to be, bulldog, puppycat, Mowdy or an ugly big green beetle. Let that freak flag fly. And people will come to see what is going on!

Today:

👩🏾‍💻 Remember who and whose you really are.

👩🏾‍💻 Then BE