I’ve been married 25 years, and I brought a couple of small pets into marriage that died before we’d even had children. We had a couple of temporary wild toad “pets” to facilitate a Boy Scout merit badge, a snail that I’m not even sure is still alive, and a super small flock of Coturnix quails that are egg-laying quasi-pets. No mammals. Until now.

Our kids had been asking for a dog for years, but we held off for various reasons. Earlier this year, we began the search in earnest with a short checklist of preferences about what this pup would look like. At the top of the list was price. We couldn’t pay what amounted to a mortgage payment or more for an animal. We asked around and filled out numerous adoption applications with no luck.

Then on a work appointment, my husband talked to a couple who passed on the name of the place they’d found their puppy. My husband called and learned about a couple of mixed breed pups (from an accidental litter) that sounded like what we’d been looking for.

My husband and I drove about an hour to see the two puppies available, with one in particular in mind. They called her Molly.

Well, we came home that day with Molly (now Tillie), a bag of puppy kibble, and an eagerness to share this sweet animal with our children.

We marveled at how perfect Tillie was. She checked off all of the boxes we’d been looking for and then some. She was gentle, patient, and adorable.

And we were so grateful to get her. Three of my children came to me independently to say how blessed we were to have found Tillie and how thankful they were to their dad and me for bringing her home.

See, we’d gotten discouraged after months of not finding the right dog. Or thinking we had and learning it was no longer available for adoption. But there were those couple of puppies . . . Mocha and Molly, wasn’t it?

And then we remembered.

We’d seen Molly before. She and her litter mate were the adorable tiny puppies we’d seen listed online earlier in the summer. We’d wanted to inquire, but they’d been adopted. Or so we thought.

My husband pulled up Tillie’s photo from at least six-eight weeks earlier. Yep. That was the pup. The one we ooh-ed and ahh-ed over, thinking we’d found our family dog at last. The one who’d slipped through our fingers.

I’d prayed that we’d find the dog. The one that suited our family. The one God had in mind for us. My husband had prayed about this dog at Adoration the night before we picked her up.

God didn’t give us just one chance at Tillie. He gave us two!

God didn't give us just one chance at Tillie. He gave us two! Via Puppies, Possibilities, and God's Generosity Click To Tweet

I’ve readily accepted that God gives us many, many chances when it comes to forgiveness and redemption, but I haven’t always recognized the chances he gives us in fulfilling the desires of our hearts.

When it comes to morality, our course of action is usually obvious. If we’ve developed our consciences and are attuned to the Holy Spirit’s promptings, we recognize the right course of action. But so many decisions, either insignificant or life-altering, aren’t matters of strict right or wrong but about discerning God’s will.

It’s those decisions that can leave us feeling like one misstep can throw our lives off course. How many of us, looking back, have wondered if we’ve chosen the right course of study, the right profession, the right job, the right relationship, the right spouse, the right opportunity, or the right risk? Especially in times of discouragement, it’s tempting to wonder if God doesn’t care about those things at all. And if we’ve made the “wrong” decision, can we ever reverse course? Are we left to stumble blindly due to one misstep? Do we forfeit happiness because we chose wrongly?

Tillie is a furry-faced reminder that God cares deeply not only about the little things in our lives, but that He will answer our prayers by whatever means He pleases – even if we’ve veered off course. Even if we miss an opportunity or make the wrong call.

Tillie’s just a dog. But when I see Tillie, I see God’s hand. I see a Father who delights in my family’s joy.

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