A Valuable Lesson Taught By A Kitten

A little gray kitten taught me a valuable lesson on drawing closer to God.

By Oleeta J. Takao, Birmingham, Alabama

I used to have trouble keeping my mind from wandering and from worrying about my problems during my morning meditations. No matter how hard I tried my quiet time would have stressful moments where I couldn't feel God's comfort.  Then one day when I was feeling restless and cranky I heard our silver kitten crying at my feet.


I tried to pick him up and put him in my lap where I could soothe him, but he would have none of it. He shrieked and scratched, then squirmed from my grasp. 


I was annoyed. Doesn't he see, I thought, that I want to comfort him?


Then a small voice seemed to answer: It's like you and God. He wants to hold you to comfort you, but sometimes you are so frantic that He cannot.


After that, I decided to try a little exercise during my daily prayer time. I began envisioning myself crawling up into God's lap. As I snuggled close to Him, I felt His strong arms enfold me. Then, taking a deep breath, I imagined that the power of God was flowing into my body. If a worry came to mind, I leaned my head against His great heart and listened. Slowly all the distortions in my thinking began to dissolve.


At last, I felt the unity with God that I had been seeking.