HAS God been kind to dogs? Has He given them bodies?
Yes.
Have they bones and flesh and blood and skin?
Yes.
The dog has a body as well as you. Is the dog’s body like yours?
No.
How many legs have you?
Two.
How many legs has the dog?
Four.
Have you got arms?
Yes, two.
Has the dog got arms?
No; it has no arms or hands. But the dog has legs instead.
Your skin is smooth, but the dog is covered with hair.
Is the cat’s body like yours?
No; it is covered with fur.
Is a chicken’s body like yours? How many legs has the chicken?
Two.
And so have you. But are its legs like yours?
No; the chicken has very thin legs, and has claws instead of feet.
Have you feathers on your skin? Have you wings? Is your mouth like a chicken’s beak? Has the chicken any teeth?
No; the chicken’s body is not at all like yours. Yet the chicken has a body, for it has flesh and bones and blood and skin.
Has a fly got a body?
Yes, it has a black body, and six black legs, and two wings like glass. Its body is not at all like yours.
Who gave bodies to dogs, horses, chickens and flies? Who keeps them alive?
God thinks of all these creatures every moment.
Can a dog thank God?
No, dogs and horses, sheep and cows, cannot thank God.
Why can they not thank God? Is it because they cannot talk?
That is not the only reason.
The real reason is, they cannot think of God. They have never heard about God. They cannot understand about God.
Why not?
Because they have no souls like yours.
Have you got a soul?
Yes, in your body there is a soul which will never die. Your soul can think about God. When God made your body, He put your soul inside. Are you glad of that? When God made the dogs, He put no soul like yours inside their bodies, and they cannot think of God.
Can I see your soul?
No, I cannot see it. No one can see it but God. He knows what you are thinking about just now Which is better, your soul or your body?
Your soul is much better.
Why is your soul better than your body?
Your body can die, but your soul cannot die.
Shall I tell you what your body is made of?
Dust. God made the dust into flesh and blood.
How was your soul made?
Your soul is made of the breath of God.
That little dog will die someday. Its body will be thrown away. The dog will be quite gone when its body is dead. But when your body dies, your soul will be alive forever.
Where would you be put if you were dead?
Your body would be put in a hole in the ground, but your soul would not be in the hole.
Even a baby has a soul, or a spirit.
One day as I was walking in the streets, I saw a man carrying a box. Some people were walking behind and crying. There was a dead baby in the box. Was the soul of the baby in the box?
No, its soul had gone up to God.
Will you not thank God for giving you a spirit? Will you not ask Him to take your spirit to live with Him when your body dies? Say to God, ‘Take my spirit to live with Thee when my body dies and turns into dust.’
What is that part which can’t decay?
It is your soul.
Your body will decay; it will turn into dust. But your soul will live forever; it will never decay.
Questions
What other things have bodies, as well as you?
Are their bodies like yours?
What have you besides a body?
Why cannot dogs and horses think of God?
Is your soul better than your body?
Why?
What is your body made of?
What is your soul made of?
Where will your body be put when you die?
Where do you hope that your soul will go?
What happens to us when we die?
A verse from the Bible for you to learn: