5: Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth.
Psalm 105:5 (NKJV)
By Bro. John L. Cash, “Country Preacher Dad”
I have never forgotten what happened 39 years ago today. November 1st, 1970 was a Sunday, just like today’s date—and it is forever remembered in the annals of my family as “The Day Billy Put the Kitten in Our Car at Sunday School.”
I had had a very busy time the day before Halloween in 1970. My father had driven my family and some of my sister’s friends to Memphis so we could watch a high school band marching contest. When we got home to Stuttgart, I went to a Halloween party that my 4th grade teacher, Miss Mitchell, was giving for my class.
After that, I made my usual trick-or-treat rounds, and that always included paying a visit to Billy and Wanda Rule’s house. While collecting my candy there, Wanda pointed out a box containing a mama-cat and a litter of kittens and asked me which of the kittens I would like to have. (This is a question that children are often asked, but 99.9% of the time the child does not end up with a kitten. Every child knows this.) I told her I liked the little solid black one.
Well, the next morning, we all went to the Sunday School at Central Christian Church, as was our invariable custom. Everything proceeded like so many other Sundays until after the benediction. But when I returned to my father’s car to go home I had a very nice surprise waiting for me—a box with a tiny black kitten inside it. My father told me later that he’d seen Billy slip out and put something in our car.
It was one of those rare times for a kid, one of those times when all the planets line up and no one in the house says, “Of course it’s a very funny joke, but you cannot keep the kitten and you must give it back.” The kitten became our house cat, and my sister named her “Tigger”. She was a good cat, had two litters of kittens, and was a very good mother. We had her for a long time, and she was a wonderful pet.
Isn’t it amazing the things we remember in life? You would think that our fondest memories would be the “big” days—things like proms and graduations, award banquets and honor receptions. But I find that the memories I cherish most are not the “important” dates, but rather the “little” days when something good happened. I spend so much of my adult life remembering the ordinary days that somebody made very special by touching them with thoughtfulness and kindness.
The Scripture lesson today (at the top) reminds us to remember all the good things that God has done in our lives. When we take time to remember the Lord, we are more grateful and we have more happiness in our daily lives. And dear mamas, please stop waiting until the “big” days to make life special for your little ones. Even the plainest day can become a special day if you take a little extra care to touch it with love.
Dr. John L. Cash is the “Country Preacher Dad” * He was raised in Stuttgart, Arkansas, and is beginning his 25th year of being a country preacher in the piney woods five miles south of the little town of Hickory, Mississippi. He and his lovely wife, Susan, and his sons, Spencer (age 18) and Seth (age 15) live in the parsonage next door to the Antioch Christian Church (where on Thursday, a drive to a meeting through the beauty of Autumn brought him as much joy as a banquet). You should write him at extramailbox@juno.com.
