I had just walked in the house from school, heavy with all the seemingly large burdens of a fifteen-year old. I was by myself - my Dad was at work, of course, and my Mom was a teacher, so she would arrive home shortly after I did. I reached for the phone to call my BFF (although, as it turns out, the "forever" part was inaccurate) Michelle and catch up on the day's news. Out of the corner of my eye, I see our solid black cat, Zorro, wanting in at the back door. I put the phone down and let him in, not paying much attention to what he may or may not be bringing with him. And then, the moment when I couldn't NOT pay attention to him: Zorro had hanging from his mouth the biggest rat I had ever seen. You know how cats like to show off their catch, play with them for awhile, and then kill them? Good 'ol Zorro, not very bright but quite the hunter. He opened his mouth to meow at me, to let me know of his good fortune, and at that moment the rat fell from his mouth. And ran under the fridge. And I am not talking about a cute little mouseling, no, I am speaking of a full-fledged RAT. Long stringy tail, bristled back, beady eyes. I can still see him. I think it was a he. And shiver.
So I did what any other 15 year old would do: I SCREAMED. At the top of my lungs, and then I jumped on the counter, still screaming in my panic. And then I called my Dad, knowing he would rescue me from this nightmare.
"Hello?" says the familiar voice on the other end.
"AHGHGHGHHGHGHHHGGHHG! DAD. ThereisaRATinourhouseZorrobroughtinitranditsunderthefridge and AHGHGHGHGGHGHGHHGHGHGHG!"
I was so well-spoken at 15.
"Okay. Well, DON'T MOVE. Make sure it doesn't get lost in the house. I will be right there."
"Ummm, okay."
"Where are you now?"
"In the driveway."
I was no dummy. I wasn't about to stay in that house with a rat on the loose. So I ran screaming into the driveway as soon as Zorro dropped it. But I did, thankfully, grab the phone (thank goodness cordless phones were around) so I could call my Dad.
Don't we all have rats in our life? The thing(s) that we are afraid of, that we aren't willing to do, that send us running into the driveway, screaming? Revealing too much of ourselves, admitting the sin in our life, or the anger, or the selfishness, or the.....
And isn't it always our nature to run, sometimes screaming but usually with no-no-no running through our head, from the uncomfortable?
But what if we stayed? What if we looked at the rat(s) in our life and said YOU DON'T SCARE ME. I am not running to the safety of the driveway. I am gonna stay right here and....
......reveal what's broken. Admit where I fail. Confess my pride. Ask for help. Seek counsel. Accept wise advice.
My Dad did come home. He dropped Zorro behind the fridge. Zorro emerged with the rat in his mouth. I wasn't screaming in the driveway, because my Dad was there. I was no longer afraid. We went in the house together, laughing - perhaps a little nervously - but still laughing. We coerced Zorro out of the house, where he dropped the rat in the front yard, and then my Dad killed it.
No one can do it alone. I was no longer afraid because my Dad was there. Today's rats, tomorrow's rats, next year's rats no longer frighten me because I have a Savior. And no matter what, there is grace, and mercy, and freedom when we face the fears in our life head on, with our loving Father right by our side.
"Don't move" He says.
"I will be right there."
And it's enough.