Six new baby kittens were born on our Iowa farm a few weeks ago, down in the shed, next to an old TV set that hasn’t worked in years.
I like to think of our newborn kittens as accidental therapists. I’m often in need of a mood adjustment, so I come out to the shed several times a day and creak open the door, certain that I’ll find my smile somewhere inside. Kittens are great perspective shifters, living in the moment as they do — always chasing the fun or plotting mischief, with food breaks in between.
As much as I enjoy our kittens, they inevitably bring a mix of frustration and heartache to my life.
First, the frustration.
While impossibly cute, kittens are also furry little goblins with zero etiquette and a high sense of self. They knock things off the shelves of the shed. They ignore my stellar pet-parenting. Yesterday, a kitten named Dave peed in the cat food, even though I’d specifically trained him to use the litter box.
Second, these kittens bring heartache. Quite often, a kitten will mysteriously fail to grow. It will wander off to a corner, curl into a ball, seal its eyes shut, and die. We’ve been on this farm for nearly seventeen years now, and every kitten holds a bit of my heart. There are always tears when we dig tiny graves for tiny animals.
Still, I love these kittens – with a reckless, unreasonable love – even though I know they will break my heart. Even though I know they’ll misbehave. Even though they act they like don’t need me. Even though they think they are little gods running the show. Even though they snag my shirts with their sharp little claws.
The other day, as I was walking back up the hill from the kittens’ shed to our house, a truth bomb dropped into the center of my soul. It felt as if God were talking right to me with these words: “Now you know how I feel.”
I couldn’t get over the truth of it, rolling over me with a ferocious and holy warmth. I couldn’t get over how God just keeps on loving us like He does, how He actually enjoys us, how He creaks open the door of our lives, and in some weird way, He actually delights in us.
I mean, here we are – people who routinely break His heart. We surely frustrate Him. We think we are little gods running the show. We misbehave.
But He keeps on creaking the door open, keeps on loving us.
In the book of Romans, the Apostle Paul makes a long list of things that, on their face, look like the sorts of things that would keep us from receiving the love of God: sin, trouble. Highs, lows. The thinkable and the unthinkable. But Paul writes, “Absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s love because of the way that Jesus our Master has embraced us” (Romans 8:39, MSG).
The most liberating truth in all the universe is this: Jesus is absurdly and ravenously in love with us. He is for us.
He is for you!
You might turn your back on Him, change your mind about Him, stomp your feet at Him, or run away from Him. But He will never, ever leave your side.
You might fall, stumble, trip, fumble, sin, grumble, and make a general mess of things. But He can’t not love you.
He made a way back, a way up, a way out, and a way in. He came for you, all the way to Earth to rescue you. And He’s not giving up on you now.
Stand with me in this moment, on that patch of grass between the house and the kittens’ shed, with the sun warming our backs. And let God drop that truth into your heart. Hear Him tell you how He loves you with a reckless love.
And nothing, absolutely nothing, can stand in the way of it.
Hear Him tell you how He loves you with a reckless love. -@dukeslee: Click To Tweet Leave a Comment
Jennifer,
As always, I LOVE your storytelling…I also appreciated the MSG version of Romans 8:39: Absolutely NOTHING can get between us and God’s love… Since we are human, we get disappointed in people. Disappointment doesn’t exist in God’s vocabulary. If we are believers, He sees us through the blood of Christ and all He sees is purity, cleanness, wholeness. God knows our frame – it is but dust – but He CHOOSES to love us anyway. It’s hard to fathom His absurd, reckless, furious, unfathomable love because our humanity just doesn’t go there. Perhaps a mother’s heart for her children is as close as we can come, but still it’s humanly flawed. God isn’t flawed and His love for us is without hesitation, frustration, disappointment. His very definition is “love” and so to not love unconditionally would be to deny Himself. Praise, that no matter what we do, NOTHING will ever come between us and God’s love. Beautiful reminder this am!
Blessings sweet friend,
Bev xo
I always appreciate the depth of your insights, Bev. Thanks for sharing so beautifully.
I’m just going to sit with this one for a while, because it’s been a long time since I really let this truth sink in.
It’s a truth that changes everything.
I couldn’t have said that any better. I’ve been sitting here doing the same. 🙂
well said and so true.
So glad it spoke to you. I really felt a good old fashioned gospel message coming on when I wrote this. 🙂
Wow. Thank you soooo much, Jennifer. This was incredible, and I really needed this. God’s shown me the same thing with my dog and his ‘selective deafness,’ AKA not listening, and so much more. Thank You, Holy Spirit, for this Truth fuel this morning You gave through my sister Jennifer.
Our little fur friends have much to teach us. 🙂
This met me exactly where I was this morning. Thank you for listening to Him and for the perfect story/example of the kittens.
Yay! So glad the message came through. 🙂
I just love cats and kittens my cat Buttons is 15. I thank God every day I have her. You know she getting old. Your excellent reading spoke to me. She is Black and White. She needs me more than when she was younger cat. Like your word spoke to me we need God every day. We have alot to thank God for. We don’t thank him enough. Just like I thank him for giving Buttons my cat another day to live. I don’t do it half often enough. Give God thinks at the same time or give him thinks for another day to live in his Beautiful World that he has given me to live in. In fact I don’t do it often enough. We as Christian should do it more. Love Dawn xxx
Wow, 15 years old is pretty old for a cat. Has Button had the proverbial 9 lives? Thanks for being here today, Dawn.
I’m a kitten lover, so this really spoke to my heart. I have a cat now who was pretty wild, when I adopted her. I spent several days on my bathroom floor allowing her to warm up to me. Lots of snuggling and exploring. Now she barely gives me the time of day! Cats! Humans! You showed me the similarities. Thank you!
Cats are so funny. They can be incredibly friendly one minute … and so aloof the next!
Thank you so much for this beautiful reminder!! I’m definitely a cat person, though at this season of life, I can’t have a cat, nor another pet. I got my “cat fix” last week by taking care of my neighbor’s cats while she was away. I’d never thought of these similarities before; however, you definitely painted a great picture!! Thank you!
So glad this spoke to you, Trudy! Thanks for being here.
There is NO way I can begin to describe HOW much I needed to hear this today… of all days.
Oh Aisha … It means the world to me to know this found its way to you, right when you needed it most!
Jennifer: Thank you for your words. I was feeling down before I read this and your words helped put things into perspective for me. This morning I began my year trek to the Veterinarian’s with my critters: 3 dogs and 6 cats. We actually brought 1 cat with us when we moved here, the rest have just sort of wandered into my heart.
I didn’t think about it until I was straggling to get a cat in a carrier and a dog on a lead into the Vet Clinic: how easy this all was last year, when a young Vet tech offered after the first patient to come out to my home and vaccinate the rest of the crew. I had gotten to know this young man fairly well over the last year and he and his whole family were so supportive after my husband of 47 years died. I really appreciated his kindness and concern and was devastated when he died suddenly a few months later by suicide. I hope during his short life that he knew God’s reckless love.
Oh Alice! What a tragic and heartbreaking story. Such kindness shown to you in your time of need, but alas, he was suffering his own heartbreak. So sorry, Alice!
Reminds me of this fantastic worship song by Cory Asbury called Reckless Love https://youtu.be/Sc6SSHuZvQE
Kathy, Yes! I had the same thought as I was writing this post the other day. Thanks for linking to the song here.
Jennifer, I’m a few days late in reading this! But what a reminder of the truth!! It’s human nature to fail, be negative when we do with ourselves or disappointed and in that moment of negativity the go to thoughts are often How can God love us now? But as Bev said his love isn’t of this world or surpasses our understanding the depth, breadth, width of it. God sees us through the redeeming blood of our saviour and He is love so he cannot deny himself. I need constant reminders of this and to trust in it!! Thank you
Jennifer,
We are mere flawed humans that fail miserably on a daily basis. The evil one continually tries to tell us we’ve done it to many times & God can’t possibly love us any more. Yet each time we come to Him with a repentant heart He forgives. Sometimes I wonder why He loves me so as I mess up so much. Yet His reckless abandon love comes through. Praising God for His continual love toward us no matter what. People disappoint us all the time, but each time we forgive & forget just like Jesus does. We need to forgive & forget just like Jesus. Others are just mere humans like us. Thanks for the great analogy!
Blessings 🙂
Dear Jennifer it Dawn here from Northern Ireland in Enniskillen. Do you remember I told you about my cat Buttons the other day in my reply being Black and White and 15 years old. That I thank God for every day she is alive. Well today I had to take her too the vet. She was not well. I miss her soo much she had too be put too sleep. She lost in a short space of time so much weight was not eating. It was her kidney and liver. Plus other things. She was too ill to try and make her well. I did cry at having to put her too sleep. But I thank God I had her as long as I did. I miss her the house is lonely without her. I don’t know if I get any more cats. Thought let you know about Buttons. She was my cat. I had her spoiled. See I have no kids. Even my husband cried. She was part of the family. I just love cats. Love Dawn God Bless
What a special beautiful little friend God gave you in your sweet cat, Buttons! So thankful you had her so many years. I am sad for you both. Pets are family, I understand that feeling. I hope you will share your heart and home with another little needy animal when you are ready. Sincerely, Sandra