Devotional: Do dogs go to heaven?

I am presently grieving the loss of my four-legged companion of 12-plus years. He was born 12 years ago on Christmas Day. We got him on Valentine’s Day — thus his name, Rudolph Valentino, and yes, he was a great lover!

Those who are dog lovers know how attached we, Homo sapiens, get to givers of unconditional love. You also know the pain and sorrow experienced when they die.

To answer the question, (Do dogs go to heaven?) I cannot say for certain they do. (I wish I could, and theologians argue over a handfull of Bible verses that suggest our longings may be true.

But I know this for a fact, our pets may not be in heaven, but our God, the biggest unconditional giver of love, will be. And God’s love, which our finite minds can never comprehend this side of heaven, will never leave His believing children:

Romans 8:38-39, “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Pastor Billy Blackmon

Highland Southern Baptist Church

This story was originally published April 27, 2016 at 6:33 AM with the headline "Devotional: Do dogs go to heaven?."