Many people love their pets and will often go to great lengths to ensure their health and well-being. My wife and I are no different.
We have a cat we dearly love that is recovering from surgery because of intervertebral disc disease, which is relatively rare in felines. The interior of the spine calcifies and crushes the spinal column. Where the disease strikes determines the kind of paralysis that occurs.
In our cat’s case, he lost all use and control of his hind quarters. Thanks to the Auburn University Small Animal Hospital, our cat can walk again. His tail still cannot function, and his use of the litter box is hit and miss — but mostly miss.
Because of that, we keep him confined in a large area near our family room, cordoned off with a low picket fence. He can watch us and interact with us. But we won’t let him walk freely about the house as he used to until he regains control of his “biological functions.”
Oftentimes, the verbal interaction we have isn’t enough for him. Usually, reaching over the little fence to pet him isn’t satisfying. He wants and needs more on occasion. When he does, he continuously cries out to let us know of his need.
When one of us enters his pen area and places him in our lap, he becomes very calm and content. He purrs, settles into the comfort of a loving lap, and will sometimes fall asleep.
As I have reflected on this experience, it made me think about the soul that God has implanted in every person’s heart. Our souls cry out for God, to be loved by God, to be comforted by him, to be reassured of his presence in our times of need, to be joyful with us when we accomplish feats large or small.
At times, we are hurt to the point of spiritual or emotional paralysis. At times, we feel we are left to suffer on our own. Sometimes, we just simply want and need to know we have not been forgotten.
Our souls cry out to God, to the living God, for the reassurance we have not been forgotten. As Psalm 42 starts out, “As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.”
This is true for every person. It may feel like a restlessness, or being unfulfilled, or even a sense of hopelessness.
Your heart is crying out to God. As you seek God, recognize his presence. Understand that he envelopes you with his loving arms and assures you that all will be well, that all will be peace, that his love for you endures forever.
And then rejoice and be comforted in him.
The Rev. Mark Broadhead is pastor at Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church and First Presbyterian Church of Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: BROADHEAD: Like a cat seeking comfort, our souls cry out for God