Have you been entrusted with a ‘large love’ in your life? A love that is equal parts gift, privilege, responsibility and vulnerability? I believe those loves are to give us a glimpse of the love God has for each and every person. Learning to steward such a love takes a lifetime! It requires embracing the love and then living the legacy it creates.
This piece is a stewarding of a love our family enjoyed–and it is offered to help you steward the loves God has given you. It is offered to turn your eyes to the love of God that is the greatest love of all. Love transforms when we allow it. Let’s love well.
The large love that captivated our whole family entered our home just six years ago. Scout arrived as a 16th birthday gift for our daughter. He loved his ways into everyone of our hearts.
He was 
never a demanding dog–he never needed to be. His gentle presence lulled you into giving him most anything he wanted. Even at 90 pounds, he lived as a lap dog.
He simply loved and taught us how to do the same.
The Bible is the place to go for the best definition of love. 1 Corinthians 13 is the ‘love chapter’ and I know it well…but head-to-heart learning has to be lived. This precious dog reminded me of truths about love too beautiful not to share.
Love it patient and kind…It does not demand its own way.
It’s wonderful to be around love, but it’s an even greater joy TO LOVE. The nature of this 
gentle giant wooed everyone. His size made it common for him to 
get his way–but he never demanded it. He was a quiet giant who loved cats, bunnies and doves…and his nature was such that they loved him too! The love of Scout was felt by the tiny animals he adored–and they quietly loved him back.
Love is not irritable and it keeps no record of wrongs.
Like most dogs, Scout lived in the moment. Any wrongs were forgotten and love always his offering. Miraculously, the nature of this precious boy led us to emulate the same beautiful characteristics. 90 pounds of dogs takes up a lot of space, creates a lot of mess and eats a lot of food. It never mattered–until he wasn’t here and then the absence of those things just proclaimed his love more intensely.
Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful,
and endures through every circumstance.
The same soulful eyes that talked to us daily, pleaded with us as the pain set in and his heart grew weaker. The love he taught still pleads with us to not give up on love. It is worth the grief to have loved well–and to have been loved.
But all of this is truly for a deeper purpose than the love of a great pet. For you see, love is from God. We thought Scout was a birthday gift, but really he was a gift from God to us as a family. The gift of Scout was to remind us what real love looks and feels like. It was to remind us each what love accomplishes–and how to love better. Scout was to remind us how God loves us and what that love will do if we will really live in the ‘large love’ of God. Real love transforms! Have you let Him transform you?
Heartsong Ministries 