If you are up to it, today I have a true story to tell you about a pastor and his cat that will make you chuckle each time you think about it. As I write this, only a few days after the snow, ice and frigid weather conditions, I certainly need something that will bring a smile to my face, and I hope you do, too.

            This story was told some time back by Dwight Nelson about the pastor of his church, and as I said, this story is supposed to be true. This pastor’s kitten had climbed up a tree in his backyard, and then was afraid to come down. The tree was not sturdy enough to climb, so the pastor decided that if he tied a rope to his car and drove away so that the tree bent down, he could then reach up and get the kitten. That is what he did, all the while checking his progress in the car.

            He then figured if he went just a little further, the tree would be bent sufficiently for him to reach the kitten. But as he moved the car a little further forward, the rope broke. The tree went “boing!” and the kitten instantly sailed through the air, out of sight. The pastor felt terrible. He walked all over the neighborhood asking people if they had seen a little kitten. No. Nobody had seen a stray kitten. So he prayed. “Lord, I just commit this kitten to your keeping,” and went about his business.

            A few days later he was at the grocery store and met one of his church members. He happened to look into her shopping cart and was amazed to see cat food. This woman was a cat hater and everyone knew it, so he asked her, “Why are you buying cat food when you hate cats so much?” She replied, “You won’t believe this,” and then she told him how her little girl had been begging for a cat, but she kept refusing. Then a few days before, the child begged again, so the mom finally told her little girl, “Well, if God gives you a cat, I’ll let you keep it.” She told the pastor, “I watched my child go out in the yard, get on her knees, and ask God for a cat. And really, Pastor, you won’t believe this, but I saw it with my own eyes. A kitten suddenly came flying out of the blue sky, with its paws outspread, and landed right in front of her.” Never underestimate the power of God and His unique sense of humor.

            Back in the days when I was traveling around the country, making speeches and getting paid for it, I used humor for a different reason. My mix was about 20 percent humor and 80 percent more serious content. While I love a humorous story, and love to laugh, I used humor to relax me and my audience. What I have noticed about the really good humor speakers is that they get invited back more often, and also get paid more. This fact proves that people love to laugh and, as I said, this is truly needed in today’s times.

            One of the stories I used to tell is about the practice of appointing a “Tapper” for the worship service in many rural churches in the South. The tapper stood at the back of the sanctuary and had a long rod or stick, and if he observed someone nodding off or not paying strict attention, he would quietly walk down the aisle and tap the offending person on the head. Well, one Sunday the church had a visitor, and about midway through the pastor’s sermon the visitor nodded off and the tapper saw him. While he hated to hit a visitor, he recognized his duty to the church and to the Lord, so he very quietly walked down the aisle, and he “ruch” over and tapped the visitor on the head. Whereupon, this visitor said, “Fella, you had better hit me again, I can still hear him.”

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(Editor’s Note: Jim Davidson’s new book, “Your Future Begins Today” is destined to become a New York Times Best Seller. Get your copy at www.jimdavidsonnsc.com. He is giving a good portion of book sales to begin Bookcase Literacy Projects in other communities all across the nation.)