“Sunday Sermon”
“Parable of the Grateful Cat,” by James E. Talmage
Apostle James E. Talmage, author of Jesus the Christ, shared the story of a nineteenth century English naturalist who had been invited to a grand estate to be honored for his contributions to science. He left his cottage early in the morning and went for a stroll. Down by the pond, he saw two boys and heard the frantic meowing of a cat. Curious, he walked over to see what was happening.
He saw the two boys with a mother cat and her kittens. The boys were taking each kitten, tying it up in a rag with a rock, and tossing it into the water.
Watching her kittens being drowned, the mother cat was frantic. Upset himself, the naturalist asked the boys what they were doing.
It turned out that the mistress of the manor had a mother cat that she loved. However, she didn’t want any more cats around. Whenever the mother cat had a litter, the woman hired children of her servants, to go down to the pond and kill the kittens.
The naturalist talked to the boys. He assured them that they would not get into trouble, but he would take care of the remaining three kittens. The boys agreed and were relieved.
To the scientist’s surprise, the mother cat behaved as if she understood exactly what was happening. As he walked back to his cottage with the kittens, she ran alongside him, rubbed his leg, and purred happily. He took the kittens into his cottage, gave them some milk, and put them in a warm box.
That night, the audience gathered in the great hall of the mansion to honor the scientist. Suddenly, the door was pushed open and in came the mother cat. She was holding a large, fat mouse in her mouth. She scurried to the scientist and laid the mouse at his feet.
Elder Talmage continued:
What do you think of the offering, and the purpose that prompted the act? A live mouse, fleshy and fat! The mother cat obviously thought that the mouse was a superlative gift. To her limited understanding, any rational creature would be very pleased with a present of a meaty mouse. Everyone would be ravenously joyful with such an offering. The cat couldn’t comprehend anyone unable to appreciate a mouse for a meal.
But the gift offering was one that the scientist neither needed, nor even wanted. Are not our offerings to the Lord as thoroughly unnecessary to His needs as was the mouse to the scientist? But remember that the grateful and sacrificing nature of the cat was enlarged, and in a measure sanctified, by her offering.
Thankfully, God measures the offerings and sacrifices of us, His children, by our capacity, ability, and the desires of our heart, rather than by His needs or wants. He both understands and accepts our motives and righteous desires. Our need to thank and serve God is incalculably greater than His need for our service and gratitude. (From James E. Talmage, Improvement Era, Aug. 1916, pp. 875-76.)
The One Gift God Wants from Us, Neal A. Maxwell
Neal A. Maxwell:
I am going to preach a hard doctrine to you now. The submission of one’s will is really the only uniquely personal thing we have to place on God’s altar. It is a hard doctrine, but it is true.
The many other things we give to God, however nice that may be of us, are actually things He has already given us, and He has loaned them to us. But when we begin to submit ourselves by letting our wills be swallowed up in God’s will, then we are really giving something to Him.
And that hard doctrine lies at the center of discipleship. There is a part of us that is ultimately sovereign, the mind and heart, where we really do decide which way to go and what to do.
And when we submit to His will, then we’ve really given Him the one thing He asks of us. And the other things are not very, very important. It is the only possession we have that we can give, and there is no resulting shortage in our agency as a result. Instead, what we see is a flowering of our talents and more and more surges of joy. Submission to Him is the only form of submission that is completely safe. (“Sharing Insights from My Life,” BYU Speeches, Jan 12, 1999)
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(Website: londonedition.net)
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