Posted on by Lori Cartmell

Are You a Cat or a Dog?

It’s hard to embarrass a cat. They just don’t seem to have a sense of shame.

If they’ve done something naughty, like shredded the fabric on your expensive couch with their claws, they’re not actually sorry about it. They’re just ticked off that you’re making such a big fuss about it.

Cats seem to lack the ability to be repentant.

Dogs, on the other hand, can definitely feel and show contrition.

Just take a look at the plethora of “dog-shaming” videos online.

Dog owners upload clips in which they confront their mutts with the evidence of their misdeeds. The owners come home to garbage-strewn rooms, destroyed furniture, and chewed-up shoes. The disaster area is documented on video, and then the camera pans to the dog…

The results are often hilarious.

The mutt slinks off with its tail between its legs, or else sits there looking sheepish and trying not to meet their owner’s eyes. The pooch might even try to hide in a cupboard.

Yes, dogs know when they’ve done something wrong.

The question is, do we?

Are we quick to ask God’s forgiveness when we sin, or do we justify our behaviour to ourselves and continue in our disobedience?

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Posted on by Lori Cartmell

Nip Sin in the Bud

Image by mouad gnnoni from Pixabay

Is it possible to limit yourself to just one piece of chocolate?

I’ve never been able to.

I find that having the first piece simply whets my appetite for a second. And I deserve a treat, don’t I?

Then I reason that dark chocolate contains antioxidants, so I’d better have several more pieces, if only for medicinal purposes. After all, you wouldn’t want me to oxidate, would you? I should hope not.

Finally, I rationalize continuing my chocolate binge by referring to the nutritional information on the package of my favourite dark chocolate for support.

It states that 4 squares of the chocolate contain 25% of my daily recommended amount of iron. So if I ate 16 squares, I’d be getting 100% of my daily iron needs met, right? Well, it’s important to prevent anemia, so I then decide I’d better finish off the package completely.

Do you see how my excuses and justifications led from having one piece of chocolate to consuming an entire heap of the stuff in short order? And how easily this all happened?

It’s the same way with sin, isn’t it?

It starts out tiny and unnoticeable, but can soon grow into a mess of mammoth proportions.

That’s why it’s so important to nip sin in the bud, because we have no idea where a “small” sin will lead.

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