Lily Grace will be performing with her human mom, Amber Utter, at First Friday in downtown Warsaw on Friday, April 3. April 3 also happens to be Lily Grace’s first birthday. (Photo by Rebekah Whirledge)

What is a “Gospel dog?” It is something Lily Grace and her human mom, Amber Utter, intend for local young people to find out. Their ministry, The Adventures of Lily Grace, is a dog show performance that also teaches the audience a little about the Gospel message and Jesus.

“Lily Grace is a Gospel dog. She’s very outgoing, and I use her tricks to illustrate points in the Gospel so kids can understand,” said Utter. “She is very outgoing and loves kids.”

As part of her performance, one of the one-year-old German shepherd’s tricks is to find a hidden sheep toy. Utter explains this trick illustrates how Jesus calls his followers his sheep, and will seek and find the lost sheep and not allow any one to be taken away.

Utter, who works in the office at Culligan Water Conditioning in Warsaw, first began to actively share her faith with others after a serious car accident in 2001. In the aftermath of the accident, she also found out she had cancer.

“It changed my life. I got through that time in my life because God spoke to me,” she explained. “He showed me Jeremiah 29:11. ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’ I knew then that I had a future. God healed me of everything.”

She suffered a broken vertebrae and ribs, but eventually made a full recovery from her injuries and the cancer.

After that life-changing experience, Utter began taking her small dog, Jonah, to nursing homes to visit residents. When Jonah passed away, she knew she wanted to train a bigger dog as a Gospel dog. Her father was a K9 cop in California, so she was familiar with German shepherds.

“I wanted to offer hope to children that also might be in a hard place, offer them hope and future,” she said. “That’s the good news.”

Utter practices with Lily Grace in the morning before work, during her lunch break and in the evening. She attends a training class at Marsha’s Best Dogs in Claypool once per week and also watches videos on YouTube about dog training.

Lily Grace will be performing with Utter at First Friday in downtown Warsaw on Friday, April 3. April 3 also happens to be Lily Grace’s first birthday. In the future, Utter hopes to bring the Adventures of Lily Grace to VBS programs and camps.

“Through Lily Grace, I want to show God’s glory,” said Utter.

To follow the Adventures of Lily Grace online, go to adventuresoflilygrace.wordpress.com.