10th birthdays

The other day, three of our cats turned ten.  This makes them around 64 human years.  The ‘boys’ as we call them have never had any other human parents; love their younger ‘brother’ Sniffles, and tolerate the dog.  But it started me thinking. I know dangerous, right?  Could we, as humans, live our entire lives with the people we love, depending our Parent to fulfill our needs?

Don’t get me wrong. They are not always happy go lucky OR calm.  They bicker with each other, Sniffles, and us.  They beat up on the dog.  They complain bitterly if they are not fed on their timetable or their litter boxes are dirty.  Sounds like humans, doesn’t it?  If we don’t get our way, we complain.  We always have.  They even try to take matters into their own hands.  For those cat owners, have you ever noticed that they will ignore every grocery sack you bring in until the meat bag is put on the counter?  Or for Moe, potato chips?  (Yes, he likes salty or sweet things.) We even tell God, “No”. They do as well. (A beloved, talkative cat that was ancient in cat years taught them to say no when they were 6 months old. He got into trouble but loved that they could now ‘talk’ back).

Like all ‘children’, there is some discipline that has been brought into their lives. A swat on the nose means “no”.  Diluted vinegar water means go away or ‘shame on you’.  A swat on the backside means that they are in trouble (if we can catch them.  They do have 4 legs instead of our disabled 2).  But sometimes “No, Stop that!” works.  But, they know they are loved.  

The cats have an advantage that we as humans do not. They can crawl in our laps and get love.  They even touch our noses with theirs for a ‘kiss’.  We must trust in the love He has promised us and is evident in our lives every day.  And our fellow humans offer us the love they give, whether it is a hug, handshake or a kiss (for those of us in a human relationship).  But when we ask the Lord for stuff, whether substance or luxury, He answers.  He never gives us a snake or a stone (unless we ask for that) and we need to remember that He cares for us.

The funny thing is that even our pets are reminders of how much He cares for us.  They love us for us and choose to live with us.  They trust us as much as we should trust in Him and quit second guessing His plans for us as He has said that He “has plans to further us and not harm’ us.

sports and friends

Have you heard of fair-weathered friends?  They are those people who are only your friend as long as it benefits them and not always you.

But what about fair-weathered fans?  I must admit that I don’t really care for the game of basketball.   I have broken far too many glasses because of getting smacked in the face. I also can’t throw over my head very well.  But how should that affect my watching basketball?  It makes me dizzy if I watch too long.

Don’t get me wrong, I support my local teams, which is why I’m watching the Mavericks today.  I like football, so I watch most games, or at least listen to them. I don’t like baseball so I just say, “Go, Rangers!!”  I can’t keep track of the hockey puck on TV, so I say “Go Stars!”  But, I will watch the Mavs if they are in the finals.  But, as a member of the population of the greater Dallas/ Ft. Worth population, I can be a bit wishy-washy about sports.  I can even like other teams and no one will get too mad at me.  One cannot be that way for a friend.

The Bible says many things about friends and how nice it is to have them.  But it also tells us to be truthful.  So, if I call you a friend, I better mean it.  That also means that I go all out to be a friend.  We love at all times, support at all times, pray for the other before we pray for ourselves.  People have even given their life for their friends.  Wow.  How many of us would do that?  Perhaps we should think about our friends the way when we were little.  Not school age per say, but when we trusted, shared, and loved.  The Lord did say that we should look to the children for faith.  I’m not adding more than what He said, but if we acted in faith towards others, wouldn’t we be better friends?  

Okay, I’ll have faith for my team. But, in the mean time, I will make every effort to be a better friend.