TR, thank you for your honesty. It must have been terrible growing up with a neighbour like that. My sympathies. I have kind of had the opposite experience. I lived in Northern Canada (61 degrees North) from the ages of 5-10. Our neighbours had a severe problem with alcohol. So much so that their three children all had fetal alcohol syndrome. The youngest was by far the worst off with birth defects. It still breaks my heart to this day. 🙁 Anyway, the middle child was a boy in the same class as me. He was quite scrawny and weak but was a gentle spirit. However, his older brother was mean as could be. He took particular delight in tormenting their cat. That cat became so mean and angry from the abuse that it lashed out at everyone. Me, my younger brother, huge dogs, you name it. I remember it jumping on this big dogs back and digging its claws in and riding that dog all the way down the block. The dog was yelping all the way. https://cops.usdoj.gov/html/dispatch/04-2019/animal_cruelty.html https://www.idausa.org/animal-abuse-serial-killers/ Anyway, I do recognize that there are some that place animals higher than humans. That's part of the new age deception. The enemy wants us all dead. Thank you for bringing up the subject. However, most of us here are pet lovers and do not make idols out of our pets. So, your point has been made and I appreciate the admonishment to not do so. Shalom. Much appreciated in every point! TR I think what is out of balance is any assumption that any of us would love our animals more than our Creator and Savior, and/or that Jesus has no room in His heart in Heaven, to any longer allow His children to love anything other than Him - when He Himself gave the animals and pets to us as gifts in the first place, as our companions, to love, to regard, to care for, to enjoy, and who provide needed help with in the toils of the earth, with farming, constructing, for food, and that were and are useful for travel. Not to mention the countless true stories of pet owners who survived tragedies because of the love and loyalty of their pets who warned them of dangers, whether physical bodily dangers, or fires or intruders in the home, and various protections as God intended. Something God also instilled between man and pets, and pets and owners. Yes, there is evil in the world, but give credit to the majority of good people whose inner instincts on both sides, are to simply care, and be lifelong companions. And give credit to Christians who know from where animals came, why they were given, and who care for them as God intended. I can see no reason God would take away what He freely, intentionally and lovingly gave from the beginning. God gave pets to us for reasons too numerous to count. The bond between us and them is of Him. Blessings going both ways, instilled by the hand of the Lord. Revealing His nature and His love for man and animal. We can trust He is not threatened in any way, in that two-way heart connection between man and animal, because God Himself designed it to be that way. --------------------------------- It is true that man was “created in the image of God.” However, this fact does not justify man assuming an attitude of superiority or indifference toward animals. God placed intrinsic value in them, and we should respect them as part of God’s creation, thereby honoring God. https://www.all-creatures.org/articles/an-tpr-godslove.html well, we can all agree, i think, that God is creative and that all of His creation including animals were made for His glory and that He loves to bless His children who have accepted His Son's payment for their sins and that He has blessed many of us tremendously with His animal creations... kolleen- i love the verses you posted...they bring joy to my heart and hope to my soul that our Lord's creations will continue for all eternity to be a blessing to me...and to their Creator! daily my family and i are blessed by the pets God brought to us...we have learned much that He has taught us about Himself through them... an awesome recent experience- a little gift from the Lord yesterday happened when hubby and i were going into the store where we'd bought our wedding rings 14 years ago and on a sign just above the door was a little bird singing such a beautiful and clear song that hubby actually thought (before we saw it)that it was a recording! it was so amazing- and it was unique looking (to us) it was a little ragged in appearance but then such a pretty red part on it...and he was so close and not scared of us- just kept singing what i believe must've been a praise song to our Heavenly Father! i absolutely love animals! and, yes, TR, we need to love people even more...and sometimes that's harder for some of us...pets are often such examples of unconditional acceptance, loyalty and what feels like love when others let us down, betray us and reject us...God is working on me recently- convicting me of the need to love our brothers and sisters in Christ and that that is hard to do without being around them- I know He knows we need each other and wants to bless us through each other...gonna have to go back to church and not just sit in jammies w/ pets and hubby watching great pastors teaching us on u tube! Thank you gratefulforgrace. I have other verses from what I've posted on our facebook RN in times past, ....but am still looking for them!! Have you ever saved something, never to find it when you need it!? :unsure: I'm so pleased those scriptures above gave hope. When God's promises are directly from His Word, that is the hope we can rely on. oh, and Geri- i love Randy Alcorn's Heaven book! it's been a decade since i've read it- need to again, but got several books i want to read, so hopefully will just be experiencing it soon instead! (preferably by way of the "alive and remain" at a soon Rapture :flyup: :flyup: and kolleen- in answer to that question...um, absolutely...sadly, always saving things online (poor hubby i've filled up the bookmarks on the computer and then can't find stuff in them and just re-find them online anyway)...and in person physical things in case i need or want it in the future and rarely find it when i do want or need it cuz i'm not a good organizer and have too much stuff...yes, i pray we will always have access to our Bibles and even if not that Holy Spirit will always remind us of the Word of God when we are still and quiet enough to recognize the still small voice inside as He ministers to our souls...cuz i'm not great at memorizing full scriptures in order to "find" them in my minds' recollection... Ok, here is an interesting verse … Psalm 36:6 Thy judgments are a great deep; O Lord, Thou preservest man and beast. (Preservest means to keep from decay) :yes: Do you believe the earthly Garden of Eden was more superior than the heavenly Garden? Do you think the heavenly garden is going to be missing the variety of animals, birds, insects, etc.? I don’t think so :whistle: So why wouldn’t our precious fur babies not be brought up to the heavenly garden and be kept safe from judgment time when God pours His wrath against the disobedient lost? Malachi 4:5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:" Great day for us because we are raptured out but dreadful day for the lost because judgment is coming. Will God leave our beloved fur babies here to be judged with the unsaved? My vote :bye: its a no, way, Jose. :whistle: Well said Kolleen! All the Lord creates is good and glorious! Sadly, we abuse all God has created. Ourselves, spouses, children, and sometimes our pets! Then the other extreme is deifying Gods creation! Persoective and balance! We can offer crumbs from the masters table, but it is still the masters table! TR God definitely works in mysterious ways. ^^ This thread inspired to look into pets and animals in regards to eternity more closely. I especially enjoyed reading the blog that talked about Exodus 10 and the redemption of animals. https://deborahsbiblestudies.wordpress.com/2015/02/18/do-our-pets-go-to-heaven-2/ After this thread was created, I was asked on short notice by an elder at my church to give a message as our Pastor could not be there. Interestingly enough, the Parsha for the week was Exodus Chapters 10-13. (Parsha Bo) So, I preached about Passover and how it is a glorious picture of our salvation. (Yeshua, our Passover Lamb) I even got to put in a good word for the animals, even using No hoof, nor paw, nor claw will be left behind. 😉 https://jewsforjesus.org/parsha-weekly-torah-portion/parsha-bo Anyway, I see God's Hand in this. So thank you KWS, for creating this thread. Like ripples on a pond, it will have far reaching effects. :good: 
There are definite links between animal abusers and serial killers/mass murderers. Tragically, in this fallen world, there are those that prey upon the weak and the innocent, whether it be human or animal.
Perspective is import! Even though God repented of making man, we alone are called the crown of his creation!
