¶ Intro / Opening
Good morning and welcome to Starting Right with Danny Mac . I'm going to be here every Monday to Friday to help you get a great five-minute start to your day . So grab your cup of coffee , sit back , relax and let me help you start your day right . Most people have a favorite of their pets . They're either cat people or they're dog people .
Well , my wife , for the most part , is a cat person . She likes her cats very much , but cats are very unique . It's been said that you never have a cat for a pet . The cat simply has you for its convenience . I came across a story from Arthur Gordon as he talks about his cat .
It goes like this this morning our big cat , oreo so named because he is a handsome black and white and I go through a familiar ritual at the back door . Oreo has been outside for a while and he really wants to come in . So I open the door and wait , but will he come in ? No , he won't .
He stops and lowers his head suspiciously as if I were some deadly enemy . Come on , oreo , I say impatiently . He sits down thoughtfully and begins to wash his face with one paw . Maddening Oreo , I say I give you food . I supply all your needs If you do anything in return . I don't know what it is .
Now I'm personally inviting you into my house , so come on in . Oreo puts one foot across the threshold , then he draws it back . He looks out across the yard with some remote , unfathomable expression and he still doesn't come in . Oreo , I say I'm not going to stand here forever . If you don't come in , I'm going to close the door . This is your last chance .
I start to close the door slowly . Does he come in ? No , he sits there exercising his free will or something . He'll come in when it suits him . Not before he figures , I'll be patient , and so far he's right . Before he figures , I'll be patient , and so far he's right . God made cats .
He also made people , and I wonder how he feels sometimes when he stands at the door and waits and waits . Somehow , I think I know Throughout the Bible people are compared to sheep . We kind of need someone to lead us and to guide us , and Jesus is our shepherd . But I think this concept of us being a lot like cats sometimes is also very true .
We want to enter into God's presence and power when we want to , but we want that to be our choice and our timing so that it works best for us in our circumstances . I've heard it said many times that Christians are educated way beyond their level of obedience , and I believe it's absolutely true .
We know more about what God's Word says and what Jesus asks of us than we actually put into effect in our lives . We don't fully embrace all of the things he wants us to do and be . We're reluctant to do that for whatever reason . That's why the Bible tells us that we are to be changed . We're not to be like the people of this world .
Romans , chapter 12 and verse 2 in the New Living Translation says Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world , but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think . Then you will learn God's will for you , which is good and pleasing and perfect .
And that's actually a pretty cool concept if you think about it , that by the grace and power of God we can actually change the way that we think . All of those thought processes and all of those reactions that we hold inside that make us uptight and angry or hurt .
All those things can be overcome when we allow God's Spirit to make the changes in our lives that we need to make . But it always starts with the choice . We need to choose what we are going to do . Are we going to follow God ? Are we going to step into the life that he has for us ?
Are we just going to step our toe across the line every once in a while and just see what it's like ? My wife may be a cat person , but really I'm a dog person , and dogs don't play those kinds of silly games of . I'm going to come in no , I'm not going to come in . Yes , I'm going to come in . Going to come in ? Yes , I'm going to come in .
No , I'm not going to come in . When you open up a door for a dog , it charges right on in and wants to be a part of everything where you are . Well , I kind of have that as my goal for my spirit as well , that when God opens up the door for me , I want to charge right in and experience everything there is that God has for me .
We are all in this journey together . Every one of us has good days and bad days , and challenges and victories , but all along the way we are serving the same God and we are all growing to become more and more like Him . Have a great day , my friends , and we will talk again tomorrow .
Thank you for listening today , and I invite you to join me Monday to Friday , right here on , starting Right with Danny Mac .