Something tried to EAT Gonzo!

Precious Friends and Family,
      Gonzo ran off AGAIN last week. This time a lot of fears were realized when he turned up missing... Nitro begged me to go out later, but I didn't think anything of it.  I started to worry about the two of them when I finally went to bed.  It is common for Gonzo to run off whenever he can, but Nitro usually stays within the boundaries of the invisible fence.   
     I called the neighbors.  No, they hadn't seen the little Toto dog whose fur is like a brillo pad.  Since they all know that he can run as fast as a cheetah, none were willing to be humiliated by attempting to catch the little escapee again. 
    At three in the morning, I awoke to the sound of Nitro barking and opened the laundry room door to find a pathetic Gonzo deposited on the back steps.  He whimpered and couldn't move when I called him.  He had drool on his back and his hair was matted.  I went to get water and food.  When I returned, I found nasty bite wounds on his neck and blood on the rug.  He seemed to be paralyzed and in shock.  I wept to see this little warrior in such rough shape.  When I had done all that I knew how to to do treat his wounds, I went to bed, but I couldn't sleep.....
      Gonzo has always believed that he is a ....BIG dog.  We've never had the courage to tell him any different.  As I tried to get back to sleep, all of the times that we joked about eagles circling our little cairn terrier floated around in my head.  We've always said that they had no idea who they were thinking about messing with!  This 6 pound powerhouse has had his way around our 100 pound golden retrievers many times and would probably ground any bird foolish enough to mistake him for a tasty tidbit.  I kept replaying all of the times that we laughed as we imagined predators spitting him out because he tastes bitter and his fur is so thick and course. 
     He has some socially unacceptable habits as well.  We've always referred to him as the dog that only our family could love.  That's why many of you haven't seen him much.  If we have company, he is almost guaranteed to sense the captive audience and to embarrass us with his antics.  We usually coax him into the laundry room with the promise of treats until guests leave.
     As my thoughts continued to swirl uncontrollably in my sleepy stupor, I thought about the drool on Gonzo's back and his pathetic posture on the back steps and wondered if Nitro had somehow rescued him from a coyote and brought him home in his mouth. 
     That thought made me think of our amazing GOD.  Even though we may be wayward and surly and lacking in social graces, our God follows us wherever we go and loves us despite the fact that we are unlovely to ourselves and to others. He is all about bringing us to healing.  He loves us stubbornly and unconditionally. 
     It is that confidence that motivates us to overcome every obstacle in our path as we seek to bring our wheel chair bound Phillip home.  This process is refining and healing and uniting us in so many ways.  Phillip is a special boy who is loved by a BIG GOD:  A GOD who has orchestrated Divine appointments and circumstances in order to bring home a broken boy and bring him into his broken family (including one wounded and rescued carin terrier) in order to bring glory to our BRILLIANT GOD.