Laddie – Safe in the Master’s Care

“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit.”
— John 15:16 (NKJV)

“So, Jesus is in the boat…

but if He isn’t calming the storm, why should I feel secure?”

That question came to me one morning as I was walking our twelve-year-old Border Terrier, Laddie. The air was cool and still after rain, and as he trotted along ahead of me, tail up and ears alert, I began thinking about what it really means to be safe.

When we first got Laddie, he was only six weeks old. We’d driven hundreds of miles to bring him home — a long journey, and quite an expense at the time. He had no idea what was happening, no sense of being chosen or loved. We simply saw him, decided he was ours, and brought him home.

He didn’t earn it. He couldn’t. And even now, he doesn’t need to. He just lives in the security of being loved.

Laddie trusts that there will be food in his bowl and a walk in the morning. He doesn’t question whether we’ll still love him tomorrow. When he’s hurt or frightened, he runs to us. When he misbehaves, he’s corrected — sometimes sharply — but always forgiven. His confidence isn’t in his own goodness; it’s in our care.

Once, years ago, he wandered out of the house without me realising. When I closed the door behind me, he was left outside — alone and anxious. He ‘knocked’ at the door, scratching and whining, until I heard him and let him back in. The moment he saw me, his tail wagged furiously. He didn’t sulk or hide. He was just relieved to be home.

That image has stayed with me. Because to God, I am Laddie.

I did nothing to deserve being chosen. Jesus came for me, paid the highest price, and brought me home. I am still learning what it means to live in His household — to trust, to obey, to stay close. And when I stray, He comes looking for me.

So when I ask, why should I feel safe if Jesus isn’t calming the storm?

The answer is simple:
because my safety doesn’t depend on the weather — it depends on whose I am.

I belong to Him.
And that’s why I’m safe.

“I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.”
— John 10:28 (NKJV)