I feed my cats a little bit of food many times throughout the day. Supposedly that is healthier for them – especially for the one that likes to gorge herself.
Feeling tired of so many trips to the cat food bag, I was considering bringing the timed feeders up from the basement – the ones that we are supposed to use when we are on vacation, but, for a number of reasons, don’t.
Well, really, it is just one reason. Our little cat, Pippin, is afraid of going into the box her feeder gets put into. The feeders each have to go into a box with a controlled entrance so that the big cat, Nemo, doesn’t eat Pippin’s food. But since Pippin refuses to cooperate, we need neighbors to feed her. So they might as well feed Nemo, too. But I digress.
Right now the cats love to interact with me. Yes, they do just want a snuggle sometimes or a buddy to nap near. However, they usually come padding over with a chirrup to let me know that it’s time for lunch, supper, snack, you get the picture.
Several years ago, we had just gotten back from vacation. We had let Nemo use the timed feeder in her entrance-controlled box and had a friend stop by to feed Pippin. Rather than empty out the feeder, I decided to let the feeder keep running and feeding Nemo.
At first, it seemed like a big relief. I could give Pippin all of her food at once in the morning, letting her munch on it throughout the day. And Nemo would run down to her box whenever she heard the food falling into her dish.
But after a couple of days I noticed a big change in Nemo.
She no longer hopped up on my lap at least once a day to mash her head against my hand, twisting and shoving with the full force of her 17 furry pounds in what my family had nicknamed, “The Super Snuggle.”
Now she kept her distance, peering at me from behind a couch or door frame with just one eye visible.
So I emptied the timed feeder and began feeding her myself again. She still kept her distance, running to the opposite side of the kitchen until I had her dish on the ground and had walked a few steps away.
I needed to come up with another plan to re-domesticate her.
I stopped allowing her to eat until after she permitted me one pat on her back or head. At first I would have to slowly pursue her around the kitchen table. Eventually she caught on that she wasn’t going to get anything to fill her grumbling tummy until she stopped dodging me.
Now we are back to super snuggles several times a day, even after she has had her midnight snack, which occurs at about 8:30 pm because I am too old to enjoy staying up until midnight anymore!
My interaction with Nemo made me think about how God has to interact with me, sometimes. There are moments when He won’t allow blessings in my life until I settle down and allow him to commune with me.
But unlike my interactions with my cats, which are based on my selfish need for furry companionship, God isn’t selfish. While God does desire my companionship, He doesn’t withhold blessings as a way to control me, but as a way to lead me into my best life.
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
Matthew 6:33