I was over at the house of a friend this weekend and learned, for the first time, about “dookie balls.”

Evidently, dookie balls are what petite dogs deposit in the house when they should have made the deposit outside in the grass. When they are properly deposited outside they are called dog turds.

Reflecting on the whole concept of dookie balls, I’ve decided that it has merit when applied to so much of what we do in Christianity.

For example, we might spread rumor and hearsay in a prayer group under the guise of “being concerned” about a brother (dookie balls), when we really are gossiping (dog turds). Or we might “amen!” the preacher’s call to help the homeless (dookie balls) but cross the street to keep from passing by a panhandler (dog turds). We might agree to pray for someone who is sick (dookie balls) but do not believe that it will really happen (dog turds). The examples are endless <sigh>.

I wonder if this is what Paul had in mind when, in 1 Thessalonians 4:13, he said “brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant…”