King Furball
Cats are the pets. We do not work for the cat. The cat is here for our enjoyment. We are not here to be slaves to the cat. The cat is not the superior being in the house. We are the superior beings in the house. We do not work for the cat.
Ok, those of you with cats in your household reread the above statements. Write them out. Say them back to yourselves. You, too, will eventually be able to believe these statements without laughing yourself silly or shaking your head in dismay.
Cats are very confused creatures. If you happen to have one as a pet, you will most likely agree they can be confused into thinking they are royalty in your house. I am reminded how arrogant and confused cats can be when I watch my daughter’s pet, Bubba, prance around our house as if the King of the Roost.
Bubba is from a strange order of felines. Generally, I have found cats will associate with you to prove themselves to be of a higher intelligence, they walk around like monarchs, and occasionally allow you to stroke their fur. Bubba is different. He does not want anyone but my daughter to touch him. He will walk away if he catches you even looking at him, which is a very easy way to get him to leave the room when I have had enough of his regal qualities. In general though, all he is concerned about is eating, sleeping, and filling the litter box. Of course, as King of the Roost, he expects his slaves… I mean, us, to feed him, allow him his privacy to sleep, and clean his litter box. King Arrogance.
Then I found his weakness. Ahh… now, as humans, we must express our superior knowledge over the animal kingdom and claim our rightful position in the pecking order. Some readers may be raising their eyebrows, wondering in disbelief if maybe I found some long lost secret about these furry freaks called cats. Well, readers, I will not let you down. Although the secret is well known and available at your local pet store, we sometimes forget how to exert our superior intelligence over these arrogant hairballs.
The secret is catnip.
Within five minutes of walking in the door with this prize, Bubba tossed aside all his regal, majestic appearances and attacked the bag as if he was a rabid dog. He pounced on it. Rolled around with the catnip hugged tight to his bosom. When I took the catnip away, he treated me as if I suddenly became the catnip. He clung to my legs and begged for my attention. I could stand it for no longer than ten seconds, so I tossed him his vice and left him to the stupor of the nip.
Cats have no choice when it comes to liking catnip. Bubba’s reaction to the substance is part of his nature. In this same way, we are subject to the nature of sin. The fallen nature of man is a curse against all mankind and the lure of sin is beyond our abilities to avoid.
This is our weakness. As we recognize this weakness, we have confidence in knowing the Lord has made provisions for us. We find this specifically spelled out in Romans 8:26-28, “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us… because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”
The Lord has made provisions for us through the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit guides us in our prayers when we are too ignorant to recognize our own conditions – the Spirit intercedes on our behalf “…in accordance with God’s will.” Yet as we look at the beginning of these verses, we find that there is a requirement for this intercession: prayer.
We also know the Lord would have continual intercession of the Holy Spirit to give us guidance in all things. We find this in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, where we are told to “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Now some may read this and think this means we are to have our hands folded, heads bowed, and eyes closed in continual prayer, which is not always possible (especially when we are driving, so please keep your eyes open and hands on the wheel).
However, when we consider prayer is direct and complete communication with God and the Holy Spirit is an extension of God dwelling within us, we see this verse and directive from God is calling us to a state of communion with the Holy Spirit. Our recognition of His presence and our readiness to abide by His will puts us in a “continual” spirit of prayer.
In this, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us and is available to give us guidance in all things, specifically in our weakness. When we consider all our weaknesses, we can be thankful of the presence of the Holy Spirit, His intercessions, and His guidance.
And after watching this furball, we can also be thankful catnip is not a weakness for humans.
When being a Christian is tough, are you tough enough to avoid catnip?
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Glenn Sasscer
www.glennsasscer.com
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