I was in a dressing room, trying to make a decision on a pair of pants, when I heard her. An older woman, she was outside in the little waiting area, speaking to the store employees, the other people waiting, and anyone else within ear shot, and she was talking about her dog. A teacup Yorkie, it turns out, and the conversation was specifically about that Yorkie’s birthday party.

Her FIRST birthday party, to be exact.

It was held at a high class doggie accoutrement store in Dallas, where she had a huge cake made (with doggie-safe ingredients) and they invited all her friends. The friends got to shop for a party favor at the store, and there was, apparently, a game involved. It was such a big society affair, that the local press came to cover it, and she and her little darling had a nice interview on the evening news.

While I was trying to reconcile this in my mind, she moved on to talk of equally lavish affairs for Fi-Fi’s other birthdays (not her real name which, strangely, I never caught in conversation), all the while giving her constant approval to any article of clothing that the employees brought back for whomever she was waiting on in the dressing room. Once they all caught on to this, she became the queen bee, with all the worker bees buzzing around her, getting her something to drink, and making sure she was comfortable. They all asked her more questions about Fi-Fi, and feigned (it appeared) interest in her every itch and scratch.

As the dollar signs reached ever new heights, I felt more and more empty. And sad. Really sad.

Not all of us have the financial resources to fling about to get this kind of attention, but we all have experienced desiring attention so badly that we’d do just about anything to get it. We act a certain way, do things that may be a little extreme, become a door mat, behave badly, act like a clown, or maybe even go the other direction and wallow so deeply in sadness that others are constantly coming to our rescue. At our very core, we want to be known and loved just for who we are, but we have it in our heads, through either bad past experience or simple lies, that our selves are not enough.

So we throw a big, expensive party for our tiny little dog and appear on the evening news in front of a million viewers.

Do you know that there is Someone who knows you inside and out and still loves you? Do you know that, though He loves every other soul on this planet equally, He will still come and find you – YOU – when you are lost? Do you know that He sacrificed His ONLY SON for you, and would’ve done it if you were the only one on this globe?

It’s true. And it doesn’t require any fanfare at all, or any crazy antics, to get His attention; just an open, sincere heart.

Thankfully, His eye is on you every second, without need of doggie treats or a special cake. Although, I think that news is worth some sort of a party, don’t you?

“You know me inside and out,
    you know every bone in my body;
You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit,
    how I was sculpted from nothing into something.” Psalm 139:14 MSG

“What’s the price of two or three pet canaries? Some loose change, right? But God never overlooks a single one. And he pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head! So don’t be intimidated by all this bully talk. You’re worth more than a million canaries.” Luke 12:6-7 MSG

“He won’t let you stumble,
    your Guardian God won’t fall asleep.” Psalm 121:3 MSG

““Suppose one of you had a hundred sheep and lost one. Wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the lost one until you found it? When found, you can be sure you would put it across your shoulders, rejoicing, and when you got home call in your friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Celebrate with me! I’ve found my lost sheep!’ Count on it—there’s more joy in heaven over one sinner’s rescued life than over ninety-nine good people in no need of rescue.” Luke 15:4-7 MSG