Why Cats Have Nine Lives

Why Cats Have Nine Lives

Dr. Vince  Hefner, Pastor

First Baptist Church, Cherryville

I have always heard that “seeing is believing.” I guess the reason this holds true for most of us is because we will believe what we see in life, no matter how strange or hard to accept. I remember a time when my daughters were small, adorable and would listen to their dear ole’ dad! We had just finished dinner and my daughters decided to feed our cat, Maggie, some leftovers of the meal. All that they had left to put in Maggie’s bowl were some green beans covered in Duke’s mayonnaise (if you have never tried this combination, you don’t know what you are missing!). I told the girls to remove the green beans from Maggie’s bowl because cats do not eat green beans, or so I thought. Maggie walked right over to her bowl and started eating! I would not have believed it if I had not seen it with my own eyes. It must have been the Duke’s! The reason this action surprised me is because I have never seen a cat eat green beans. I have never seen cat food at the store labeled, “fish, green beans, and a hint of Duke’s Mayonnaise!” Maybe my cat just wanted to lay off red meat and start eating healthier, if Duke’s is considered healthy eating! I don’t know (I have always heard that cats have nine lives). The last thing I would give up on any diet would be Duke’s mayonnaise! Anyway, the reason this image has stayed in my mind is because it just wasn’t natural, and it wasn’t what I expected from my cat.

I know you are probably asking yourself, “What does this story have to do with something religious?” Hold on, it’s coming. When you think of a Christian, what image comes to your mind? Do you envision a Christian as a person who never makes a mistake, and always has a smile on their face? Let me tell you what comes to my mind. A Christian is a person who has been forgiven of their sins by Jesus Christ, and a Christian also forgives others who hurt them. Follow me on this, the two (being forgiven and forgiving others) must go together. You can not have one without the other. When the world looks at the Christian community, this is what they want to see. Maybe I can’t speak for the world, but before I became a Christian, this is what I looked for, and it is what I look for now in people who claim Jesus Christ as their Lord. When a Christian gives off the impression that he is better (self-righteous) than other people, or bitter (unable to forgive) towards other people, he gives off mixed signals that confuses those who watch him, sorta like a cat that eats green beans with Duke’s mayonnaise. It’s funny how the one cat that does something strange keeps my attention, while other cats that act normal are almost invisible. One strange cat can cancel out a lot of normal cats, if you catch my meaning.

If you are a Christian, live your life in a way that honors the One who has forgiven you, and honor those who you must forgive in your life. If you are not a Christian, don’t pay any attention to those who claim Christ but chose not to honor Him or you. Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” Look to the founder of our faith, Jesus Christ, as the perfect example of God’s love and forgiveness. Remember, don’t give in to sin. Think about it!