Please forgive this momma’s pride as I share a little about my son, Scott, and an article he authored.

First, a little about the man I’m proud to call my son.

Scott is married to a wonderful woman, and they have two sons. Their oldest is almost nineteen, a talented singer, an Eagle Scout, and a second-year college student. Their youngest is sixteen, a near-drowning survivor who has cerebral palsy as a result of his accident. He is the most loving child on the face of the planet and a blessing to everyone who knows him.

My son is legally blind. He received that diagnosis at twenty-nine. He also lives with severe chronic facial pain caused by permanent nerve damage from a bout of shingles seven years ago.

The fact that he functions as well as he does amazes me.

In the last couple of years, his corneas have deteriorated further, leaving him unable to continue serving as our church’s assistant minister. Yet he continues to be there for his family, attending his sons’ activities and performances whenever he can.

If you saw Scott in public, you probably wouldn’t know he was blind or in pain. He compensates so well that I sometimes forget the extent of his visual disability. He hides the pain just as carefully.

Seeing his pain and suffering breaks this momma’s heart. It’s pain that can bring him to his knees, and it’s pain he usually allows others to see only in private.

I could not be prouder of the way he has served God and continues to serve his family.

Now that you’ve indulged this momma’s bragging, I’d like to share the article Scott wrote for our church bulletin.

Are You a Dog or a Cat?

By Scott Perkins

I saw a meme this week that struck a chord with me. The meme had two pictures. On the left was a dog with its tongue out, begging for attention or food. On the right was a cat sitting contemptuously on the back of a couch beside shredded drapes, giving the camera an “I am superior to you” look.

The caption under the dog said, “They love me, and they feed me. They must be gods!”

The caption under the cat said, “They love me, and they feed me. I must be a god.”

Now, why would that strike a chord with a minister?

The cat demonstrates well the way the world looks at our God. The world looks at all man has accomplished and says, “We did all this. We are the gods of this world, and there is no other.” How sad and foolishly superior are those who tell the Lord of Creation they are mightier and more knowledgeable than He.

However, we are called to be like the dog in this meme, attaching our affections, our loyalties, and even our very lives to Christ and acknowledging that He is our God. (Matthew 22:37; Luke 9:23-27)

How easy is it to fall into Satan’s trap in the world around us? How easy is it to look at the blessings in our lives and say, “Look at all I have. Look at all I have accomplished.”

When these moments creep in, we need to remember how temporary those blessings are and how easily they can be lost. Job lost all he had in a short time because Satan wished to test Job’s faith.

Today, Satan often does the opposite, testing our loyalty to Christ by providing an easy path to get ahead, a shortcut that requires us to step off the path Christ has set before us. That easy path is deceptive and seductive, and it leads only through a wide gate. (Matthew 7:13-14)

Think honestly about all the blessings in your life and how fragile they are. Then consider the origin of those blessings.

Did you accomplish the impossible?

Or did a loving Father provide all you needed?

Are you living as a cat, elevating yourself above others because of your accomplishments, or are you living as a dog, giving thanks to God for all you have and longing to worship Him?

I hope Scott’s article made you think. I know it made me think.

I’ll strive to be a little more like the dog, recognizing my blessings for what they are and thanking the Lord who gave them to me.