The workmen were here! And the cats were gone.
My cats are afraid of workmen. Workmen are unfamiliar, noisy, unpredictable. So they hide.
Of course, housecats have limited places to go. Hunter was behind the bed, with his head under the bedspread. Zoey was tucked under a side table.
Let me just say, these cats never were in danger. There were two vigilant humans between them and the unknown. (Unknown to them, that is, not unknown to humans.) There is no way that we would let them be hurt.
There is also no way to keep them from being frightened. All we can do is be there for them. When Hunter emerged, I was delighted to provide a lap and a cuddle. He finally got brave enough to check out the work in the kitchen, before darting back to “safety.”
And, as always, the workmen finished and left, and peace was restored to our cats and our home.
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Animals, humans included, are hardwired to fear. Fear is normal, an indication of something wrong, like a red light on the dashboard, and we should pay attention. Fight or flight (or freeze) are healthy responses to real danger.
Sometimes, though, when we read Biblical commands to “Fear not,” we think we fail God when we are afraid.
Really? Do you imagine God watching us deal with a dangerous, rampant virus and saying in disgust, “She’s doing it again! She’s afraid. I told her a thousand times to stop that!” (I don’t imagine it either.)
I do think, though, that there is a moment, between seeing the red light and panicking, when we can hit “pause,” take a breath, and remind ourselves that, “Yes, there is danger. Yes, I am afraid. But yes, my God has got this. My God has got me.”
Because, whatever might be threatening us, our vigilant God stands between us and the unknown. (Unknown to us, that is, not to God.)
What if you miss that pause moment? I can’t imagine the God who loves me being any angrier than I was when I saw Hunter’s backside sticking out from under the bed. And I wasn’t angry at all.
The Lord is like a father to his children,
tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
For he knows how weak we are; he remembers we are only dust.
Psalm 103:13-15 New Living Translation (NLT)