I was in third grade when my dad and mom and I went to the SPCA to pick out a cat. I’m guessing my dad wanted me to spend some time looking at the kittens before settling on one, but I didn’t need very much time at all.
I saw a small calico hiding in the litter box and I pointed to her. “I want that one.”
“Leave it to you,” my dad would tell me years later, “to pick out the cat with psychological problems.”
My mom named the cat Dickens and she more than lived up to her name. She was skittish and unfriendly to everyone but me. For the longest time, I was probably the only one in the world who loved her.
And then one day she vanished. She was an outdoor cat, but she and her brother always came running when we called for them. But on this day, there was no sign of her. I was heartbroken, walking through the neighborhood, calling her name. Finally, I sat on the porch, head in hands, defeated and convinced I would never see her again.
That was when I heard a meow, a soft, distant mewing. I called her name, “Dickens!” and there was the mewing again, only I couldn’t place it. I had no idea where it was coming from. When I ran inside to tell my mom, she waved me off.
“You’re imagining it,” she said.
But I was undeterred. I kept calling for Dickens and following her cry through neighbors’ backyards to the base of a giant pine.
And that was where I found her, at the top of that very tall tree.
Mr. McFee, our neighbor who disliked children and I’m sure disliked the tree-climbing pets of said children even more, climbed a ladder to the top of that tree and plucked a hissing, claws-whirring, and very frightened Dickens from a branch and brought her back to me.
Persistence is a beautiful thing, especially when it’s based on love. And there is perhaps no greater love for any child than the love they have for a pet.
But even as persistent as I was, I was also lucky. Dickens was lucky. What if I hadn’t found her before it got dark? What if my mom had called me in for dinner? What if I had believed my mom when she told me that I wasn’t really hearing Dickens at all?
As persistent as I was, I was limited.
I am reminded when I think of this story how persistent God is and how, fortunately for us, unlimited He is in His pursuit. God never gives into darkness or doubt. He never has to stop for a bite to eat. He will always find us no matter how lost we are. He will never stop.
Jesus refers to himself as the good shepherd. In John 10:14, he says, “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me,” and earlier in John 10:3, “The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”
In much the same way that I called for my lost cat, God calls for us and waits for our answer. We don’t have to be lost and afraid anymore. We can put our faith in Him and know that He will carry us home.
