Last week as I sat in my women's small group bible study at my friend Samantha's house, my attention was drawn to a grasshopper I saw pouncing through the family room. A few minutes after I saw the little creature, Samantha's cat spotted it, and I was entertained by what unfolded.
The grasshopper could feel the cat patting at it with its paw and sniffing it, and it responded by jumping farther and farther across the room, hoping to escape from the cat. It hopped underneath a reclining chair and probably thought it had found a safe hiding place.
In the moments that passed as the grasshopper hid, that cat was on alert. It circled around the recliner multiple times, stuck its paws under the chair, and even after no sight of the grasshopper, it sat right next to the chair, ready to pounce at the moment the grasshopper hopped out.
An hour of bible study passed and the cat was still vigilant. It wasn't distracted by its food dish, by people trying to pet him, and he didn't fall asleep. His interest in finding that grasshopper never decreased.
It always amazes me how the Lord will speak to me in what seems to be the silliest or most meaningless situations (aka the cat and the grasshopper scene). I was so encouraged by the imagery the Lord revealed! Most people living trapped in lives of sin know what they are doing is wrong. They feel the guilt. They run from God and avoid confronting their sin at all costs. But, even if they think they're safe and can control their circumstances, little do they know, God is in hot pursuit. God seeks new ways to find His lost children. He isn't distracted, He isn't discouraged, and He doesn't give up. God knows what He wants and doesn't stop until He gets it--and trust me, He doesn't need our help to accomplish His mighty tasks. If a cat can give that much attention to finding the lost grasshopper, imagine how much more the Lord is pursuing His own lost children? If you're praying for someone you know who is lost, living in sin, and empty, do not be discouraged by their rebellion. God is smarter, He is bigger, and He will stop at no cost to offer free salvation to the lost.
