This is John Oliver Lantern. We call him 'Jack' (get it?).Lots of neighborhood cats shortcut through our courtyard, but most of them are skittish and don't really want a relationship with us. Jack is different...... or so I thought.
Jack showed up on our porch last week, and instead of running away from the humans, he came toward us. He wanted to be petted and cuddled, and he purred to let me know that. He even let K., the two-year-old pet him.
He also seemed hungry, so I dug up a little something for him.
Yes, that's Hormel chunk ham. Jack has a discerning palate.
When K. and I returned from parents' morning out last Tuesday after feeding him once, Jack was still there, resting cat-fashion in the shade on our porch. Jack had seemingly become a member of the family; we offered a can of tuna as a welcome gift.
When I returned later in the afternoon with the big girls, Jack was still there, in a different spot on the porch. A lot of giggling, leaping and chasing ensued. Jack was celebrated, and as he seemed to be a stray, we even put an old collar with a heart-shaped tag on him.
But after homework time, Jack was gone. We called and called. We looked. We whistled. We poured milk. No Jack. We kept our eyes peeled over the next few days, searching and calling in vain.
But yesterday, exactly one week later, Jack was back. I shot him straight, "What's the deal, Jack? Where have you been, Jack? What about the ham and the tuna, Jack?" Jack had no answers for me, but he came running to me like he had never left, purring and snuggling. I gave him some more ham.
So maybe Jack is a stray and has a neighborhood schedule that allows him to come to our house on Tuesdays? Or maybe he really does have owners, but the are regularly incapacitated on Tuesdays, and he has to go begging?
I'm not sure what's going on with Jack, but I have the feeling he doesn't really love me for me. He loves me for my processed meat. That's what draws him, and it's only when he can't get good meat from other sources that he sallies up to our porch, trying to charm us out of canned goods.
All of this Jack drama just happens to remind me of a fantastic sermon I heard recently. Do we love God? Or do we love the gifts God gives us? (Or something to that effect.) Before you write this off as old hat, let me share the specific gift the pastor warned against valuing too much: grace. Yikes! This sounds nearly heretical, doesn't it -- how can we value grace too much?
The question is, do we worship God, in all his holiness, wrath, wisdom, goodness, indiscernible ways, and (yes) grace and love? Or do we worship the grace? Do we single out one of God's precious gifts and exalt it above the Giver?
As David Platt writes in Radical: We live in a church culture that has a dangerous tendency to disconnect the grace of God from the glory of God. Our hearts resonate with the idea of enjoying God's grace. We bask in sermons, conferences, and books that exalt a grace centered on us. And while the wonder of grace is worthy of our attention, if that grace is disconnected from its purpose [glorifying God], the sad result is a self-centered Christianity that bypasses the heart of God.
Oh, there's so much more to be said on this topic, but I think Jack and Platt make a good team, and I'll leave it at that.
I'm not sure what's going on with Jack, but I have the feeling he doesn't really love me for me. He loves me for my processed meat. That's what draws him, and it's only when he can't get good meat from other sources that he sallies up to our porch, trying to charm us out of canned goods.
All of this Jack drama just happens to remind me of a fantastic sermon I heard recently. Do we love God? Or do we love the gifts God gives us? (Or something to that effect.) Before you write this off as old hat, let me share the specific gift the pastor warned against valuing too much: grace. Yikes! This sounds nearly heretical, doesn't it -- how can we value grace too much?
The question is, do we worship God, in all his holiness, wrath, wisdom, goodness, indiscernible ways, and (yes) grace and love? Or do we worship the grace? Do we single out one of God's precious gifts and exalt it above the Giver?
As David Platt writes in Radical: We live in a church culture that has a dangerous tendency to disconnect the grace of God from the glory of God. Our hearts resonate with the idea of enjoying God's grace. We bask in sermons, conferences, and books that exalt a grace centered on us. And while the wonder of grace is worthy of our attention, if that grace is disconnected from its purpose [glorifying God], the sad result is a self-centered Christianity that bypasses the heart of God.
Oh, there's so much more to be said on this topic, but I think Jack and Platt make a good team, and I'll leave it at that.
"The heavens declare the glory of God. The skies proclaim the work of His hands." Psalm 19:1 May we do the same!
PS -- Dr. Paul Gardner's sermon, to which I refer, can be found at http://christchurchatlanta.org/section/resources/sermon-audio/page/2 . The title is "Gospel Grace" (August 15, 2010)
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