He looks completely relaxed, but if I try to go near him, he will run.
I was running around my house trying to get a million things done, when this big gray cat caught my eye. He was sunning on my front porch. It had rained the day before and he was clearly enjoying himself. I just itched to go and pet him, but I knew better. I had to settle for a photo from inside my house.
He’s not my cat. He’s a stray and he’s wild. I’ve tried to approach him before, more than once, but he always runs away, like I’m some kind of cat catcher. He has nothing to fear from me, but he doesn’t know that and seems uninterested in exploring the issue.
Cats have always fascinated me. Their personalities are so varied and they all kind of own themselves. Most of them refuse to be trained. They all tend to hold onto at least a tiny piece of their independence and wild nature, no matter how many years they may have lived with people.
That sunning, fraidy cat, reminded me of how we often react when God reaches for us. We are content to enjoy His blessings, like this cat was sitting on my porch and enjoying the sun, but when He reaches out for a closer relationship, we often run away.
Sometimes we are afraid of what He may want from us. Sometimes we are afraid of what He may see if we let Him get close. Sometimes we are afraid that we can’t possibly be forgiven for all of the sins we have committed in the past. Sometimes we are afraid He will change us into somebody different.
We are of course, wrong on all counts. Grace covers all of our sins and God already knows what they are anyway. And a closer relationship with Him, will change us, but we change because we want to, not because He requires us to. Christianity doesn’t work that way.
God gives us free will and then stands there with His arms wide open. He wants us to come to Him because we want to, not because there’s a gun pointed at our heads.
And sometimes, we get it right, and we trust Him and obey Him and we walk closely with Him. Other times we insist on our own independence and do it our own way, like our feline friends. That never works out well in the long run, but our God sent Jesus and because if His sacrifice, we are always welcomed back, no matter how far away we may have wandered or even sprinted.
God invites us to bask and take comfort, as we reach for His hand. Whatever the struggle, whatever the fear, He’s got us and that’s really all we need to know.
A stray cat reminded me of that. Maybe you needed reminding too.
Have an awesome day!
Wendy 🙂
P.S. I won’t be posting next week. My kids are out of school and I’m going to take some time to enjoy them and host Thanksgiving dinner and decorate for Christmas. I hope you all have a Blessed Thanksgiving. Thanks for reading.