The grumpy old lady who visits with me during my quiet time could teach me how to be with God if I would listen to her!
Alyssa, our grumpy old lady, greets me at my daughter’s door urgently meowing. Why she is banished to our daughter’s room at night is a story for another time. The food falls from my hand into her bowl and she almost knocks me over to take a bite, but only a bite.
I barely put down my coffee cup when Alyssa jumps in my lap—our routine well established during the last two years since my daughter has gone to college. She rubs her body against my lap, purring as I read my Bible and listen to a Lectio Divina. I struggle to write in my journal as she head butts me to continue petting her.
She jumps down for some water or food, but returns for more attention. She revels in our time together, not just because I bring her food, but because she enjoys my presence. After a while, she moves to a spot on the bed to sleep contentedly while I work.
David describes his longing for God in Psalm 42 as a thirsty deer longing for water. This morning, I am thinking of my daughter’s cat instead. I, too, can be a grumpy old lady, but I wish I were more like Alyssa in my quiet time. What would it look like to beg my Savior for food from his Word? To ask for him to hold me? To just enjoy his presence? Too many times, my quiet time is just an item to be checked off my to-do list.
As you travel with the Father this week, consider how you are spending time with God. I hope you will join me as I seek to enjoy his presence just like this grumpy old lady enjoys mine.