Consider this. The chicken is involved and the pig committed.

Did you hear about the farmer that has a 3 legged pig. A passerby asked him, “why does your pig have 3 legs?” The farmer responds, “that pig saved us from a house fire by squealing and making noise, waking us up, allowing us to escape.” The passerby asks, did he lose the leg saving you? The old farmer says, “Buddy, when you have a pig that smart, you don’t it it all at once!”

Here I sit, a pig. Smarter than a toddler. Able of learning more than a dog. Responding to my name in a few days. If possible, eating where I do not potty. Covering myself in mud to protect myself from heat, cold and disease. A better indoor companion than a dog or cat ever can be. Capable of so much if you move beyond the smell and the dirt.

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!” 1 John 3:1

As I sit in church with my family, I am so grateful that my wife and kids are here. Sitting in front of me and behind me are amazing men on a journey of rebirth. These guys only a few months and years ago were written off. Dirty. Smelly. Desperate. Deeply addicted to drugs with an outer crust that hid the beauty that their lives contribute. Their worth was hidden much like that mud-covered pig. Their P.I.G. title, like each of his children: Perfected In God.

“But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 NIV

There is truly nothing more beautiful than when we discover the value that God places on our lives. Nothing more valuable than when we believe what God endorsed as truth about us before time began. Then, when the pig becomes recognized for their real value. Their real purpose. Their contribution. A beauty emerges that is so marvelous, the hope of life that shines through their eyes, slightly shadowed by the fear and doubt of stumbling.

“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” James 4:8 ESV

A domesticated pig will become wild again in as little as 30 days if released. John Eldridge says in his great book, ‘Wild at Heart’ that “God designed men to be dangerous. Simply look at the dreams and desires written in the heart of every boy: To be a hero, to be a warrior, to live a life of adventure and risk. Sadly, most men abandon those dreams and desires-aided by a Christianity that feels like nothing more than pressure to be a “nice guy.” It is no wonder that many men avoid church, and those who go are often passive and bored to death.” Jesus desires to free us from an entrapping World and into the wild freedom that is a relationship with him. Like the pig, we are seconds, moments, days away from that freedom if only we ask him into our hearts.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Keep your mouth free of perversity; keep corrupt talk far from your lips. Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or the left; keep your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:23-27 NIV

So my encouragement to you today is to see the beauty, the capability, the purpose, the contribution of the pig. Don’t redefine the pig. Encourage and love the pig. Have a grateful heart for the pig and all that it offers. Provide the water, the soap, the love, the resources that allows the pig to fulfill the purposes of their life. They are worthy and the payback that they return are so marvelous. Our Perfection In God makes the pig look marvelous.

You’ve got this.