My dog almost ate Baby Jesus (remembered)

note: It is my Christmas tradition to retell this story most every year. It is like watching a Charlie Brown Christmas, or It's a Wonderful Life.. for dogs.

Dateline December 2004: My wife Mary and I have several nativity sets we put on display each Christmas season. The year 2004 was a Christmas season like most all the others, EXCEPT.. our  year and a half old dog Baylie (Husky Springer Spaniel mix) still liked to chew on things that were not her designated chew toys. 

One of those items is my kneaded eraser which I use when I am drawing my cartoons, and it looks like a lump of clay.  Well Baylie would sneak it off my desk, and chew it up but never swallow it.  Leaving a mangled pile of eraser fragments on the family room floor.  I push the crumbs back together, and continue to use it.  I know, I know.. Ewwwww!!  But she cleans the pencil lead out of it and dog drool seems to be an active agent in making the eraser .. erase. Now in the year 2020 my dog Cooper does the same thing!  BUT I DIGRESS. 

Back to the Larson Nativity sets.  One afternoon in December 2004 my wife and I came home to what looked like a Nativity Mob Kill scene.  The wooden cart from the stable was in pieces, a shepherd laying face down on the coffee table, and a baby sheep took a fall off the table and onto the living room carpet. 

I can’t imagine the horror in eyes of the 3 wise men who traveled so far only to see Baylie walk off with Baby Jesus in the clutches of her jaw.

​The question remained why? 

• Maybe Baylie wanted Jesus in her heart, and thought swallowing him would be close to her heart. Stomach?  Heart?.. good enough. BUT did not like the texture of the ceramic Jesus figurine so spit him out.
• MAYBE an audible voice from the Heavens spoke to my dog..  “Baylie.. This is my beloved son.. DONT EAT HIM!”  Only Baylie and the figurines from the nativity set know for sure.​

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Good News: A short time later the 'baby Jesus hostage crisis was over.  The son God in ceramic form was returned  to his ceramic parents Mary & Joseph  who were besides themselves with worry.  Baylie was thankful God did not strike her with lightning which was within his right.  

But.. just a couple weeks later Baylie was shocked (literally) when she chewed the lights on our Christmas tree. 

Coincidence?  I think not.


Moral of the story.  If you really love Jesus don’t risk God revoking your ticket to Heaven just because your nativity sets are low enough for Baby Jesus to be mauled by the family dog.  AND.. just like Baylie could not get Jesus in her heart by eating a figurine, neither can any of us have Jesus in our hearts just by going to church. 
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May this Christmas be a peaceful season of adoration and personal faith where Jesus is in our hearts and not just in our nativity sets. 

Christmas Blessings

​Jeff

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