A 10-year-old boy wanted to be a pastor when he grew up. One day, when the family's black cat died, he had an opportunity to do some "practice preaching" by conducting a funeral.
The boy found a shoebox and put the kitten inside it. When he placed the cover on the box, however, the tail wouldn't fit in. So he cut a hole in the lid so that the long furry tail could stick out. Then he rounded up his friends, preached a short sermon he had carefully prepared, and buried the cat in a shallow grave.
When the service was over, he noticed that the tip of the pet's tail was still sticking out of the ground. Every 2 or 3 days curiosity would get the better of him, and he would secretly pull up the cat by the tail and then rebury it. Eventually the tail came off, and the body finally remained buried!
How many of us do this with our forgiven sins? We confess our sins, but we continue to drag them up and weep over them, even though God considers the ugly things buried once and for all (Jeremiah 31:34; Colossians 2:13-14; 1 John 1:9). As a result, we are not joyful or productive in our Christian life and service.
Please — leave the "cat" buried!
— Henry G. Bosch
God has buried my sins where no mortal can see;
He has cast all of them in the depths of the sea—
In the deep, silent depths, far away from the shore
Where they never may rise up to trouble me more. —Anon.
The only sure place to bury sin is at the foot of the cross.