A homeowner in Wisconsin said he heard a cat meowing on the front porch. When he opened the door, a big long-haired, gray male cat walked in, checked things out, began purring, and then jumped up on a chair as if he belonged there. Family members couldn't believe their eyes. But when they compared the cat to pictures taken years earlier, they could only conclude that it was their long-lost pet. Clem the cat had come home after 8 years of being who knows where.

What remarkable homing instincts God has given to some animals! On a spiritual level, why is it that the backslidden child of God seems to have less? Why do we in our rebellion show less sense than the animals? We've been designed by a loving Creator, who has given us every reason to want to come home. In His presence there is hope, love, lasting protection, and fullness of joy. Away from Him there is temporary pleasure, but eternal loss and despair.

Jeremiah reminded us that even the birds live according to the times and places and ways that the Lord has built into them (Jeremiah 8:7). Only man seems determined to run to his own self-destruction.

Father, forgive us for running away from You. Lead us back to You today.    — Mart De Haan