Lesson’s from a Scared Kitty

It’s a cold drizzly night. There is a pitiful mewing coming from right outside my wall. We recently got two new kitties. The cat that came with our house–the one we adored–left over Christmas and hasn’t come back. We decided it was time to get some new ones.

I don’t think they want to be here though.

It was a bit challenging to get them to our house. Once they arrived one instantly bolted through our front yard, not to be seen until later that night. The other one was clearly terrified but didn’t have a choice but to be loved but my three daughters. Very loved.

Maybe a bit traumatized is a better word?

The poor kitty lay exhausted in its bed after a hearty day of play with the girls. Or cough, cough… a day of trauma? Once night fell it must have gained some energy. I saw it at the edge of our patio meowing loudly for its sibling. The previous owners told us it would do that. I felt all was well, but Loren thought he may run away. So I went out trying to beckon it back to secure him in the shed. He was having none of it. It fled farther into the timber meowing loudly. Pretty soon I heard a meow behind me as well. The other kitty had returned. Once united the mewing ceased and I was left hopelessly unable to help them or find them.

The next day no sign of the kitties. That is until Loren returned home from work. Shutting off the car he heard a meow…coming from underneath his car.

The poor cat had left with him at 5:30am. The kitty held on tight to the car as he journeyed to Busy Corner for breakfast then to Morton to work. The kitty must have stayed all day long in Morton and traveled all the way back home with him.

Eventually the kitty came out from the car, joined his sibling and off in the timber they went.

Until just now. I hear him mewing like a poor, sad, scared kitty. Turning around I see him peering inside our sliding door.

Excitement floods my chest and I instantly jump up from my seat and run out to the patio. I was fully planning on loving on that poor cold kitty. I am not really a cat person so maybe it was part the challenge to get him to love us back and part because I wanted this very afraid cat to feel loved. Either way, I genuinely wanted to say, welcome home come to your warm bed! You belong here!

However, when I opened the door, the kitty was not as excited to see me as I was him. He bolted around the corner, his mewing increasing in decimals and urgency. I sat on the porch shaking his food and saying “here kitty kitty.” No luck, the kitty wanted nothing to do with me, my warm cuddles, my love, or the food I was offering, so I finally went back inside.

About a half hour later he was back mewing at me, sitting on the rug by our door. This time, I cautiously opened the door. He ran a bit, but in small, slow movements I finally lured him to me. I lovingly stroked him and loved on him and told him to stay. He didn’t. A day later we found him in our van and we had to lure him out. He didn’t stay around for us to love him. He bolted for the timber again.

That was the lat time I ever saw him. He didn’t understand that we loved him, that we were a safe place for him.

I can’t help but wonder, how often I have done that to God? He beckons to me over and over. He wants to draw me into his warm embrace, to love me, to offer me safety, rest, and nourishment. But instead I feel threatened, unworthy, ashamed. I run away. In the process I take harrowing rides under cars and shiver in the cold all alone.

I deeply wanted that kitty to not be afraid, to be comfortable here, but in the end he ran away. God doesn’t want us to be afraid, He says He is here for us and we can find our comfort in Him. He tells us we belong with Him. He tells us we are safe with Him. Why would I run away from that?

He is reaching out to each one of us, let Him pull you into that warm, safe embrace.