Growing up with outdoor pets, you'd think I wouldn't mind them so much. However, I've never been much for animals in the house. That changed somewhat a few months ago when we got a cat. Still not completely thrilled with it being in the house, we tried to get it use to being outside. That was our goal anyway, to make it an outside cat.
Last Friday, Jason noticed Shadow, (very original name, I know, for a black cat) was limping; so he took it to the vet. After X-rays, he concluded that she had a broken leg. We think she got hit by a car or either fell trying to get out of a tree! The choice then was to pay $600 for surgery, or kennel her for 6 weeks and hope that she heals on her own. NEEDLESS to say, we put her in a kennel. We need to put $600 on Peyton's teeth, not the CAT!
As I watched and listened to her lay in the "cage" crying, it got me to thinking of what cages we find ourselves in sometimes, due to hurts and broken places. A cage of bitterness, selfishness, anger, self-pity.
At times, I have found myself locked in a cage, wanting to try to just heal on my own. It's really a pitiful place, locked up with little room to move. You find yourself crying out, yet getting comfortable there because you know if you move too much, it just causes more pain. Eventually, the cage becomes a new "home," a new place of comfort. You hear all that goes on around you, and know that there are those out there that care for you, but because you have chosen to "heal on your own," there is a locked door that keeps you from their love.
The other choice we have would to be to let the Great Physician unlock the door and perform His "surgery" on us. Yes, it can be costly. It may cost us our pride, our comfortable place. It may involve Him asking us to let go of our way of doing things.
His is the only way we can truly heal. "He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds." Psalm 147:3
