Here's Pastor Dave McDowell's weekly devotional that he sends out to members of his church. Dave is my brother and serves as the Music Minister at Stewartstown UMC in PA.
It is said that they have nine lives.
I would say they have nine meals......
in one afternoon.
Because I live on a farm,
one would think that I would see a lot of rodents.
The reality is that through the years,
I have rarely seen a mouse.....
until now.
I began seeing them in the barn,
then the garage,
then they appeared in the house when the weather turned colder.
This might not seem unusual for a farm,
but it is is,
when your farm has gazzillion farm cats.
I say a gazzillion,
but it might be a gazillion and one.
Through the years,
my mom has kept a legion of cats on the farm.
If I were a mouse,
I would have chosen to walk through a minefield rather than to
invade our farm.
One false move in the barn and it was over.
Cat's in all directions just waiting for a meal to walk in.
I thought it was peculiar when I began noticing the mice,
that is until the day that I cleaned out the garage.
On that Saturday, I decided to finally tackle that long overdue project.
As I was working,
my mom came from the farmhouse to the barn,
passing by the garage.
1:16pm
"Just going to feed the cats" she said as she carried the milk towards the barn.
I kept working.
1:58pm
"Just going to feed the cats" my mom said as she carried the milk towards the barn.
My mom has been battling Alzheimers for several years now.
The disease has progressed that my mom has virtually no short term memory.
She literally lives life in the moment.
Her life is filled with repetitive motions or speech that have no recall.
2:36
"Just going to feed the cats" my mom repeated as she walked by.
Well, at least she is getting some exercise, I thought as I continued
my exorcism of the garage.
3:03
"Just going to feed the cats"
Man, we are going to have some fat cats around here, I thought.
And then it dawned on me.....
Fat cats........an increase in mice.
These cats are so full that they aren't doing their job anymore.
3:42pm
I am finishing up my work
when mom walked by one more time.
That would be five meals in less than three hours.
My mom's repetitive feeding of the cats
might have been good for the local milk industry,
but is was doing no good for our cats or our farm.
Fat cats get nothing done.
Fat cats live shorter lies.
Fat cats don't fulfill their purpose
Fat cats might be good news for mice,
but they are of little value to their masters.
The church historically has been at its best
during the times in which it has been persecuted.
During times of prosperity (lots of milk)
the church has tended to be lethargic and lifeless.
Jesus spoke of such a church in His revelation to John
"I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking.
You're not cold, you're not hot-
far better to be either cold or hot!
You're stale, You're stagnant. You make me want to vomit.
You brag, "I'm rich, I've got it made,
I need nothing from anyone,
oblivious to the fact that you're a pitiful, blind beggar, threadbare and homeless.
Here's what I want you to do:
Buy your gold from me,
gold that's been through the refiner's fire.
THEN you will be rich" (revelations 3:15, 17-18a)
Jesus said that it is better to hunger and thirst after the things of God,
than to constantly seek after the things of the world.
It is then that our spirits are satisfied.
It is then that we find peace.
It is then that we best fulfill our purpose.
Cat's don't know any better
than to continually drink up milk that they don't need.
We, as children of the King, know better.
It is said that they have nine lives.
I would say they have nine meals......
in one afternoon.
Because I live on a farm,
one would think that I would see a lot of rodents.
The reality is that through the years,
I have rarely seen a mouse.....
until now.
I began seeing them in the barn,
then the garage,
then they appeared in the house when the weather turned colder.
This might not seem unusual for a farm,
but it is is,
when your farm has gazzillion farm cats.
I say a gazzillion,
but it might be a gazillion and one.
Through the years,
my mom has kept a legion of cats on the farm.
If I were a mouse,
I would have chosen to walk through a minefield rather than to
invade our farm.
One false move in the barn and it was over.
Cat's in all directions just waiting for a meal to walk in.
I thought it was peculiar when I began noticing the mice,
that is until the day that I cleaned out the garage.
On that Saturday, I decided to finally tackle that long overdue project.
As I was working,
my mom came from the farmhouse to the barn,
passing by the garage.
1:16pm
"Just going to feed the cats" she said as she carried the milk towards the barn.
I kept working.
1:58pm
"Just going to feed the cats" my mom said as she carried the milk towards the barn.
My mom has been battling Alzheimers for several years now.
The disease has progressed that my mom has virtually no short term memory.
She literally lives life in the moment.
Her life is filled with repetitive motions or speech that have no recall.
2:36
"Just going to feed the cats" my mom repeated as she walked by.
Well, at least she is getting some exercise, I thought as I continued
my exorcism of the garage.
3:03
"Just going to feed the cats"
Man, we are going to have some fat cats around here, I thought.
And then it dawned on me.....
Fat cats........an increase in mice.
These cats are so full that they aren't doing their job anymore.
3:42pm
I am finishing up my work
when mom walked by one more time.
That would be five meals in less than three hours.
My mom's repetitive feeding of the cats
might have been good for the local milk industry,
but is was doing no good for our cats or our farm.
Fat cats get nothing done.
Fat cats live shorter lies.
Fat cats don't fulfill their purpose
Fat cats might be good news for mice,
but they are of little value to their masters.
The church historically has been at its best
during the times in which it has been persecuted.
During times of prosperity (lots of milk)
the church has tended to be lethargic and lifeless.
Jesus spoke of such a church in His revelation to John
"I know you inside and out, and find little to my liking.
You're not cold, you're not hot-
far better to be either cold or hot!
You're stale, You're stagnant. You make me want to vomit.
You brag, "I'm rich, I've got it made,
I need nothing from anyone,
oblivious to the fact that you're a pitiful, blind beggar, threadbare and homeless.
Here's what I want you to do:
Buy your gold from me,
gold that's been through the refiner's fire.
THEN you will be rich" (revelations 3:15, 17-18a)
Jesus said that it is better to hunger and thirst after the things of God,
than to constantly seek after the things of the world.
It is then that our spirits are satisfied.
It is then that we find peace.
It is then that we best fulfill our purpose.
Cat's don't know any better
than to continually drink up milk that they don't need.
We, as children of the King, know better.
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