Category: Videos

Posted in Bible, Bible Puzzles, Faith, Find the Difference, Fun Puzzles, life, Thoughts, Videos

Sabbath Afternoon Fun: Find 7 Differences 1 John 4:11-12 and Happy’s Alter Call

Posted on by katherinebrianneparilli

Happy Sabbath everyone. Once again I find myself so grateful for the gift of the Sabbath. This week we made the third move to a temporary rental since moving out of our home while also having to make a trip to the doctor the day before and on moving day, on top of our search for permanent home.

While after all the craziness of this past week and the exhaustion of moving, I am so grateful for the opportunity to pull aside from the stress of searching for a home, of rushing to the doctors, shopping, etc., the past few weeks there has been a deep shadow cast upon our Sabbath joy due to the passing of our beloved dog Happy.

Within a few wees of my father’s death, Happy had become gravely ill. for 3 years he fought valiantly. Our loves and prayers giving him the courage to fight a little bit longer. But the dreaded day finally came when as much as he loved us, the pain was too great, and his hold on life to weak for him to continue fighting. And God in His mercy said it was time for Happy’s battle to come to an end.

But oh how empty the house feels without him. Starting Friday afternoon I miss his impatient demands to receive his weekly bath before Sabbath arrives so that he would be ready and waiting for the Sabbath. His love of the word of God always inspired me to seek to draw closer to Jesus. During his final weeks of battle, the word of God had been his comfort. There were nights that the only way he found rest was for me to put a sermon on the TV.

A few weeks before he passed, we were watching a sermon by Doug Batchelor talking about how now is the time to make a choice to stand firm for God. Then he made a call where he asked those who wanted to stand up for Jesus to stand up. Something caught my eyes, and I turned to see Happy, who had been resting quietly on the sofa, standing up with pride, facing the TV. There was a huge smile of joy on his face, as he answered that call and weak as he was becoming, used his strength to stand up and in his sweet doggy way, stand up for Jesus.

Happy had reached the point where he was so weak that my aunt was able to put a purse on him and he did not have the energy to move or even whimper, yet he used what strength he had to proudly stand up and face the TV with a giant smile on his face when he heard the call who was wiling to stand up for Jesus.

As I tearfully remember how much he loved God, my heart aches. I remember how much he trusted God and His word so that even though he was trembling in fear from the constant booming of the fireworks, when I put on some hymns and told him that they attracted God’s angels, and God promised that His angels would take care of us, he would look around, smile, and within a few minutes he would be fast asleep.

He was such an inspiration to us. Time after time we would see the way our dear little bundle of fur showed his love for and trust in his Creator, and it filled our hearts with longing. to him, Sabbath was an extra special day because not only would he hear the hymns and sermons that he loved, but he knew that the God whom he loved, would draw near to us and him in a special way. And unless one of us was extremely sick, he wanted to be bathed and waiting for that longed for visit by his Friend.

I do not know if our precious pets will be raised when Jesus come or if they will be given back to us in Heaven or when the earth is made new, but seeing how deeply Happy loved Jesus, how his face lit up with joy as he stood up immediately after Pastor Batchelor made his call to stand up for Jesus, it would not surprise me. It is true that God did not die for our pets, because they are not guilty of sin the way we are. But when I consider the deep trust in God’s promise to send his angels to protect his people, that was so strong that his trembling form was able to sleep even while the fireworks loudly boomed around him, I cannot help but wonder if one day our joy will be increased to see our little dog smiling up at his best Friend and beloved Creator for whom he had been so proud to declare that no matter the cost, he was willing to stand up for.

I hope that you have a happy Sabbath. And that today, like my precious Happy, you will answer the call that no matter the cost, you will stand up for Jesus.

Posted in Dog, life, Thoughts, Videos

Happy and Grandpa Having Fun My First Attempt at Making a YouTube Short

Posted on by katherinebrianneparilli

I was watching a video about increasing Etsy sales, and someone mentioned that they used Youtube shorts to help advertise their items. I had already been mulling the idea of making a short, and decided that now was the time to learn. Since I had absolutely no idea how to make one, I decided to make a few practice videos using some of Happy’s old footage to see how it works.

I found an old video of my father playing with Happy. The video is short, but dear to my heart as at it is one of the last clips of my father sitting up looking energetic and so Happy. Sadly, after he fell and broke two of his ribs his health was never the same. Thankfully we got a few more years with him, but every time that I see a clip like this I long for those hard, but comforting days when I had all my loved ones close. And I cannot help but long for the day when we will all be together again. That feeling has definitely been heightened after a tough week where it seems like everything that can go wrong, is going wrong and many things have happened to create a great uncertainty about the future.

Yet even in all this God has been gracious and granted us comfort. I can watch this video with tears in my heart because I miss my father, yet I can also have great joy as with deep longing I look forward to the happiness of the resurrection morning when Jesus will call my father and so many other loved ones from their resting place. With a great shout He will call his sleeping servants from their dusty beds, transformed into his pure image, never again to come under the dominion of pain, suffering, sickness, or death. Oh how I long for that hour when the dead in Christ shall rise first and then we who are alive shall join them.

Oh how I desire to be part of that rejoicing throng. How I pray that I will let the Lord cut, prune, and weed out every sin from my heart so that I will hear the blessing, “Well done my good and faithful servant” and my heart will leap with joy to know that I have been counted worthy to sing the song of the Lamb, and spend the rest of eternity thanking my Savior for his unbelievable sacrifice so that my sins, the sins of my loved ones, and all who desire could be washed cleaned. So that we could once again walk the streets of gold, eat from the tree of life, and have an endless lifetime to make and enjoy more memories with our loved ones.

I hope that as you watch this short little clip of my father and Happy playing together that you will not only recollect some of your dearest memories, but that the prayer of your heart would be to except God’s great gift and that nothing this world offer would stand between you and becoming a part of that rejoicing throng.