In 1978 during the a fireman’s strike in England, the British army took over emergency fire-fighting. On January 14 they were called out by an elderly lady in South London to rescue her cat from a tree. They arrived with impressive speed, and very cleverly and carefully rescued the cat, and started to drive away.
But the lady was so grateful she invited the squad of heroes in for tea. They spent a great deal of time there talking, and enjoying a nice break from the hard work of the day. After a good long visit, and with fond farewells and warm waving arms, they drove off, and in doing so ran over the cat and killed it.
The firemen lost the focus of why they were there. If they had remembered and been focused on saving the cat, surely they would have looked for it before driving away!
2 Corinthians 8:20-21 – 20 We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this liberal gift. 21For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men.
Sometimes we forget what we’re supposed to do in life. Even though we think we’re doing our jobs, and feel like we’re making progress, the reality is we’re so caught up in other activities that we’re not taking an honest look at what is truly going on around us. Sometimes we run over the cat we’re trying to save and don’t even realize it.
It’s times like these that we really have to stop and consider our path in life. Am I really following the path God has planned for me, or am I being led astray by all the stuff the world throws at us? Is God in control of our lives, or are our lives controlling our relationship with God? It’s at these times that the first few verses of Hebrews 12 comes to mind. We need to throw off all the things that entangle us and keep us in sin. We need to fix our eyes on Jesus, and consider all of those who have gone on before us…all of those who endured so much more difficult and trying times “…so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” When we grow weary and lose heart we’re not the only ones that suffer. Those who rely and depend on us suffer as well, and sometimes that’s the greater tragedy.
Living in the Word 