seriously?  Apparently it’s true. My cat is now on anti-anxiety meds to help her deal with her stress.  I am baffled.  What stress?  I mean all my cat has on her calendar is eating and sleeping and sleeping and eating, in no particular order- with an occasional trip to the litter box thrown in.  She has food and beverage available 24/7, I never let her bowls get empty.  She can sleep whenever she wants, wherever she wants.  She has the run of the house and no other pets to compete with for my time and attention.  She doesn’t have to share her toys or her favorite place in the sun with anyone.

So the mystery of why my cat is stressed out continues to elude me.  I mean she doesn’t have to hunt for or to shop for her food, it just magically appears in her bowl each day!  She has a roof over her head, plenty of toys, and she is her own boss.  (cat’s pretty much do what they want to do, when they want to do it)  She has no demanding schedule and plenty of alone time while I am at work each day.

What am I missing?  Does my cat have stock that I don’t know about and she’s been following the stock market this past year?  Is that why she’s supposedly anxious and depressed?  Does she see other cats on the TV commercials and wants what they have, thinking they have better food etc. than she does?  Does she see the neighborhood outdoor cat and want to be outdoors like her?  Maybe the news I watch on TV about what is going on in this world is making her sad, causing her to worry and stressing her out?  Let’s face it, the news today would make anyone anxious and stressed.

She shouldn’t be worried about her wardrobe.  My cat has a beautiful fur coat that keeps her cool in the summer and warm in the winter.  She never has to shop or do laundry!  What is my cat’s problem?  Is she worried that I will forget to feed her? (that has never happened, so she has no reason to think that it will)  Does she not trust that I will continue to provide for her as I always have?  Is that what causes her anxiety and stress, her lack of faith in me as her owner and provider? Is her stress issue really a trust issue?

I am feeling stress just trying to figure out the cause of her stress, which to me appears to be non existent based on her circumstances.  I could alter her circumstances if I knew what in them caused her stress, but trust is an issue of the heart and is not so easily treated.  So for now, this will just have to remain an unsolved mystery.  One I will continue to ponder but try not to stress over.  One stressed being in this house is enough!

“So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’  . . .  your Heavenly Father knows that you need them.  But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its’ own.”  (Matthew 6:31-34)

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  (Philippians 4:6-7)

Perhaps assurance is the ultimate antidote to anxiety.  Paul expressed that best in his letter to the Philippians saying, “That is why I am suffering as I am.  Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that He is able to guard (keep) what I have entrusted to Him for that day.”  (Philippians 1:12)

“An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up.”  (Proverbs 12:25)

“Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you.”  (1 Peter 5:7)

“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.”  (Psalm 68:19)

“Cast your burdens on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.”  (Psalm 55:22)

Jesus invites each one of us today, in our anxious, stressed-out, worry filled conditions, to come to Him just as we are and lay our burdens, fears, anxieties; even our very lives down at His feet, turning all over to Him.  This is His promise to us when we do;

“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

sincerely,       Grace Day