From Head 2 Heart: Cats Are Awsome! (Spelling error intended) :-)

This week, "C" is for Cats and Clash of Clans! For those that may not know, Clash of Clans is video game that my 9-year-old son and I play together on our iPhone/iPad. Although I am awful at this game, we have fun destroying enemy kingdoms and leaving with their plunder. I gave Connor the honor of naming our Clan, and thus the name "Cats Are Awsome" was created. Despite the misspelling of awesome, cats make both me and Connor go, "Awwwww." So, the name is actually quite fitting! Now, our family friend, Thom Dunaway might prefer the word AWFUL when describing cats, but for me and Connor, well we're gonna stick with our version of "awwwwwwsome."

And speaking of AWESOME, check out our new family cat, Charlotte! She is a chubby, snuggly girl who loves her mommy (a prerequisite to becoming a Macafee!).

She's still getting used to our boys, the noise, and the array of Legos and flying Nerf bullets, but every new day she becomes braver and braver. However, she's got some big paws to fill.

My favorite cat (who lived up to almost 21 years) Alley Cat, was my first baby. Alley was feisty, fun, loving, and an all-around great cat. I loved her so much that I would pray for her all the time - especially toward the end of her life. One time while I was praying the Lord showed me a funny vision -- I was approaching Jesus as He was welcoming me home. His arms were outstretched, ready to gather me into a hug. But as I walked toward Him, rather than run into His arms, I began to peer around Him as if looking for something, namely a cat! This picture made me burst out into laughter! The Lord knows me sooo well!!

When I shared this mental movie with my friends, Kelly & Ben Stahl, Ben jokingly challenged, "We don't even know if there will be animals in heaven." I quickly answered, "Oh yes we do, and yes there are! The Bible says that (in heaven) the lamb will lay down with the lion. And Jesus is said to be riding on a horse!! AND if the Lord would go to so much trouble as to save the animal kingdom along with Noah and his family, then He loves animals and He will want them in heaven!" And then I very maturely concluded with a, "Burn!"

Here's an article that I found to be quite interesting...

Pets in Heaven?
By: Hank Hanegraaff

Scripture does not exclusively tell us whether our pets will make it to heaven. However, the Bible does provide us with some significant clues that animals will inhabit the new heaven and the new earth.

First, the Garden of Eden was populated by animals, thus there is a precedent for believing that Eden restored will also be populated by animals.

Furthermore, the Scriptures — from first to last — suggest that animals have souls. Both Moses in Genesis and John in Revelation communicate that the Creator endowed animals with souls (see Gen. 1:20,24; Rev. 8:9). Throughout the history of the church, the classic understanding of living things has included the doctrine that animals, as well as humans, have souls.

Finally, while we cannot say for certain that the pets we enjoy today will be resurrected in eternity, I am not willing to preclude the possibility. Some of the keenest thinkers — from C.S. Lewis to Peter Kreeft — are not only convinced that animals in general, but that pets in particular, will be restored in the resurrection.
Dr. Kreeft, for example, is convinced that animals will exist throughout eternity.

"Are there animals in Heaven? The simplest answer is: Why not? How irrational is the prejudice that would allow plants (green fields and flowers), but not animals into Heaven." Regarding pets, he writes: "Would the same animals be in Heaven as on earth? 'Is my dead cat in Heaven?' Again, why not? God can raise up the very grass; why not cats? Though the blessed have better things to do than play with pets, the better does not exclude the lesser."

One thing is certain: Scripture provides us with a sufficient precedent for suggesting that animals will continue to exist after the return of our Lord. Isaiah 11:6-9 provides a particularly stirring image.

I'm gonna agree with Hank! And one day I will see my beloved Alley Cat once again!

And you will see your furry baby, too!