Have you ever lost a pet? If it were a pet you really loved, you may have been very sad. Maybe you put up notices around your neighborhood, describing your dog or cat. The notice probably included your phone number. And how you waited and waited for a phone call, hoping someone had found your pet.
Jeanette put an ad in the paper about her cat that was lost. She hoped if somebody found Oscar, that they would be checking the “Lost and Found Pets” column and would call her.
Oscar had taken off one evening and hadn’t come back. Normally he would return a few hours later and jump up on the windowsill to wait to be let in. But by the next morning he still hadn’t returned. Jeanette went out looking for him, calling his name over and over again. When she couldn’t find him she began to wonder what had happened to him. They had moved to this house a few months earlier, so maybe he was lost in the new neighborhood. Maybe he had gotten hit by a car. Maybe he had taken off to go back to their old home. She waited and wondered, and how she missed her pet. A week went by with no news and no cat.
Jeanette couldn’t understand why Oscar would run away. She loved him and he had everything he needed. There was always plenty of food and fresh water, and he had balls and string to play with. She brushed his fur and gave him cat treats. And he had a nice warm bed. What more could a cat want?
Cats aren’t the only things that run away from owners who love them. Every one of us has run away from God, and He loves us very much. Do you wonder why we run away when God has given us so much and cares for us? The Bible says it’s because of our sins. “Your iniquities [sins] have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you.” Isaiah 59:22But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear. (Isaiah 59:2). We are lost in our sins. And God misses us terribly, because He loves us so very much.
Jeanette kept looking for Oscar every day and hoping the phone would ring with some news. She put cat food in a little plastic dish out on the windowsill where he would sit. She left the garage door open five or six inches so he could get in out of the cold and snow. But another week went by. The cat food was untouched, and the weather turned colder.
Maybe we don’t understand why pets sometimes run away, but we can understand why people run away from God. Our sins make us guilty before God, and sometimes it’s hard to admit our guilt and that we are sinners. Some of us think we’re pretty good, and after all, we’re doing the best we can. But that really doesn’t make any difference - we are still sinners lost from God. “There is no difference: for all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God.” Romans 3:22,2322Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; (Romans 3:22‑23). Yet, He still loves us and wants us back, so much, that He sent His beloved Son, the Lord Jesus, to take the punishment for our sins on Calvary’s cross. “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:1616For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16).
At the end of the second week, Jeanette came home one evening at 5:30 and went in the front door. She noticed that the cat food on the windowsill still hadn’t been touched. Just as she turned to pull the storm door closed, in the darkness she saw something coming up the front walk. It sure looked like a cat, but was it Oscar? She looked closer at the skinny, muddy creature, then she threw open the door and scooped up her meowing pet, hugging him and burying her face in his muddy, matted fur. Oscar had come home!
Have you heard the Saviour calling your name? He has been looking for you for a long time. He misses you and is anxiously waiting for you to come back. If you’ll just come to Him and tell Him you are a sinner and that you are sorry about your sins, He’ll gladly wash every one of them away in His blood. Jeanette was so glad that Oscar had come back that she never once thought of scolding him for running away and coming home muddy. And the Lord Jesus will never scold you or tell you that your sins are too dirty - He’ll be so glad that you’ve come back!
After Jeanette welcomed Oscar home, she cleaned him up and put out fresh food and water. He went right over and began to eat. Oscar was glad to be home.
The Saviour is waiting for you with open arms no matter where you’ve been. Will you come back to Him? He will be so glad if you will, and so will you.
ML-04/25/1993