The Miracle Dog
Matthew 14:22-33
Illustration
by Billy D. Strayhorn

As you know, there are probably hundreds of walking on water jokes around. My favorite is about a duck hunter who bought a new retriever. Besides being a beautiful dog, it was guaranteed to be the best retriever anyone had ever seen. He couldn't wait to show off his new dog to his buddies. And then he couldn't say enough about his dog. All through the trip down to the camp and all evening long, he talked nonstop about his dog and how good it was going to be.

Opening day came. The hunters were all sitting in the duck blind early in the morning. The owner of the new dog was filled with excited anticipation. The dog sat next to him, ready. A flock of ducks flew over; the dog began to tremble in excitement and anticipation. A shotgun fired. At a signal from his owner, the dog took off after the duck like a streak of lightening. It jumped out of the blind, over the cover and onto the water. That's right, it didn't swim, it ran right across the water and retrieved the duck. They couldn't believe it. Everybody was flat out amazed.

This went on a couple of more times. A duck would be shot and the dog would run across the water and retrieve the duck without ever getting its feet wet. The owner was beaming. If he had grinned anymore his face would have split in two. He couldn't stand it. "So what do y'all think? What do you think of my new dog?"

One of the guys who was tired of hearing how wonderful this dog was, said, "Well, he's good looking all right. But I don't know if I'd want a dog like that or not. The dad gum thing can't swim."

ChristianGlobe Networks, Inc., ChristianGlobe Illustrations, by Billy D. Strayhorn