A man hiking out of the Chugach mountains of Alaska hoped to make it to camp before a deadly blizzard hit. He was too late. The blizzard struck with such a fury that he was unable to see even two feet in front of his face. The windblown snow and ice knocked him off his feet as he struggled to find his way. Although he knew he was only a short distance from camp, he lost his sense of direction and couldn’t determine which way to go. Finally, in the dark of night, he slumped down into a snowbank — cold, wet, and totally exhausted. He could go no further. He resigned himself to die.
As he lay there in the snow, he thought he heard something – a faint cry, like the whimpering of a puppy. He called out to it and tried to crawl toward the sound. Sure enough, it was a dog lost in the storm. The puppy had somehow become separated from its mother and was freezing to death. The man quickly began rubbing the dog’s fur, trying to keep the dog’s blood circulating so that the dog would survive. He warmed the dog with his breath, continuing through the night to try to keep the puppy alive.
The next day scouts from the village found both the man and the dog alive. They discovered that the man, by working to keep the little dog alive during the night, had kept himself alive as well.
Hot Illustrations for Youth Talks. ©1994. By Wayne Rice
A quick Google search just told me that the “self-care” industry has grown 47% in the last 5 years. And yet, the Bible tells us to “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” Not only will this make us more like Christ, but it may also rescue our hearts or even save our lives!
Just a thought,
Pastor Scott
Grace Notes 