Pets Can Enrich Your Life

Whitney Hopler

Sharing your lap with your cat, playing catch with your dog, watching your fish swim and listening to your bird sing are more than just ways to have fun. They can be spiritual experiences, too, in the sense that they can help you learn more about relating to the God who made the animals you love.

Here are some ways pets can help you grow closer to God:

Adapted from Uncommon Friends: Celebrating the Human-Animal Bond, copyright 2002 by Julie Adams Church. An H J Kramer book published in a joint venture with New World Library, Novato, Ca., www.newworldlibrary.com, 1-800-972-6657.

Julie Adams Church lives with her four-legged friends in northern California, where she operates Pride 'N' Groom Pet Care Services.

Do you have a pet, or several? If so, what type(s)? What rewards and challenges do you experience through pet ownership? How does your pet or pets help you understand more about relating to God? Visit Crosswalk's forums to discuss this topic by clicking on the link below.

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