Category Archives: Nature

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May 18, 2015

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Joy, Knowing Him, Nature, Thanks & Praise, Today: Make it Count

“AHA!” MOMENTS

aha2webPraise the Lord from the earth, you creatures of the ocean depths, fire and hail, snow and clouds, wind and weather that obey him, mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars, wild animals and all livestock, small scurrying animals and birds, kings of the earth and all people, rulers and judges of the earth, young men and young women, old men and children. Let them all praise the name of the Lord. For his name is very great; his glory towers over the earth and heaven! [Psalm 148:7-13 (NLT)]

We had a plane to catch but, before spending hours sitting on an airplane, I wanted to take a quick walk. Knowing my tendency to lose track of time whenever I have camera in hand, I deliberately left it at home. A blue jay was perched on a low branch and never moved as I walked past. Also apparently oblivious to my presence, a great blue heron stood quietly while river otters played at the edge of the pond. Unmindful of me, a red-bellied woodpecker started hammering on a nearby tree, a baby bunny stopped in the grass beside me, and then an enormous bright green Cuban knight anole slowly crossed my path. Peeved at missing these great photo ops, I complained: “God, how can you torment me this way? I’ve been trying to get shots like these for ages; now you give them to me when I have no camera!” At first, it seemed like God had a wicked sense of humor and was messing with me. That, however, wasn’t the case. He was telling me something important and it wasn’t, “Always take your camera!” I was being told that appreciating God’s splendid handiwork is far more important than taking pictures of it. A good photograph is not the purpose of God’s “Aha!” moments; those occurrences are to remind us of the magnificence of his creation and His overwhelming presence in our lives. Although I took no pictures that morning, my breath was taken away in awe, wonder, praise and thanks; I felt God’s powerful presence and returned home filled with joy.

Later that day, while reading 1 Romans, I came across the following verse: “For ever since the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky. Through everything God made, they can clearly see his invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature. So they have no excuse for not knowing God.” [Romans 1:20 (NLT)] Those words helped me recognize the truth of what I thought God was telling me through that morning’s circumstances. Since that day, I’ve managed to get most of the shots I missed that day. The anole, however, while spotted by neighbors several times in front of our house, has eluded me. I hope God doesn’t have another lesson planned when it decides to reappear, unless, of course, it’s has to do with patience: “I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry.” [Psalm 40:1 (NLT)]

Honor and majesty surround him; strength and beauty fill his sanctuary. O nations of the world, recognize the Lord; recognize that the Lord is glorious and strong. Give to the Lord the glory he deserves! [Psalm 96:6-8a (NLT)]

P.S. The day I finished writing this devotion, I felt the urge to walk outside and check out the tree in front of our house. The anole was there and I even had my camera ready. Not satisfied with the shot, however, I stepped closer and he quickly scampered up the tree and out of sight. Perhaps God was telling me that there are some “Aha!” moments that are simply meant to be kept in our memories and not in pixels on the computer! You can’t tell me He doesn’t have a sense of humor!

 

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May 9, 2015

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Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Knowing Him, Nature

HIS LOVE – Mother’s Day 2015

DSC05555-2redHe spreads his wings over them, even as an eagle overspreads her young. She carries them upon her wings – as does the Lord his people! [Deuteronomy 32:11 (TLB)]

These last few years, I’ve been blessed to watch a family of swans who nest in a nearby park. I’ve observed them take turns sitting on the nest, taking their babies for a swim and even teaching them to fly. Last year, I saw a mother swan actually taking her baby for a ride on her back, sheltering the cygnet with her wings. Moses probably never saw a swan because, if he had, he might have mentioned the swan in Deuteronomy as well as the eagle.

Thank you, God, for being like a mother bird, protecting us from harm, carrying us when we’re too weak to do it alone, and teaching us to fly. Thank you for our mothers and for every other woman who has acted in your place and boldly watched over and protected our young, helped them through the challenges of childhood and taught them the skills they need to be independent adults.

A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path. [Agatha Christie]

There is no friendship, no love, like that of a parent for the child. [Henry Ward Beecher]

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April 18, 2015

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Faith & Hope, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Holy Spirit, Nature, Salvation: A New You

RESURRECTION FERNS

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I lift my hands to you in prayer. I thirst for you as parched land thirsts for rain. [Psalm 143:6 (NLT)]

The question was asked, “How did the message of “Resurrection Day” [Easter] impact you specifically this year?” I never answered. The last two weeks have been hectic and, unfortunately, I allowed the busyness of life to keep me from feeling Easter’s complete impact. We had house guests until the day before Easter. After they left, laundry, cleaning and prep work for Easter dinner kept me from prayer and preparing my heart to receive the next day’s message. Easter morning arrived and we rushed to church where I took over 200 photos for the church website. Returning home, I had those photos to edit and post before our six dinner guests arrived. About the time the house was again clean and I’d nearly caught up with everything that hadn’t been done the week earlier, we had a second set of house guests. It wasn’t until today that I finally gave serious thought to how the Easter message has impacted my life.

We took a walk in the swamp this morning and I saw the resurrection ferns. Two days ago, when we walked the same boardwalk, the ferns’ fronds were brown and shriveled. While I reassured my guest that they were not dead, I’m not sure she believed me. It rained last night and I wish she could have seen the ferns this morning. Within thirty minutes of receiving rain, those shriveled leaves uncurl, green up and look “good as new.” Because of last night’s shower, the resurrection ferns in the swamp were lush and lovely today.

The Easter message is one of resurrection and renewal. Just as the rain water gives new life to the ferns, the living water of the resurrected Christ brings new life to us. The ferns, however, will again shrivel in the heat of the day; once we receive the Holy Spirit, we can thrive and blossom, even in hot dry spells. Jesus defeated death and by His power, we can defeat life! I have drunk of his water, been refreshed and renewed, and will never thirst again!

Thank you, Heavenly Father, for taking the shriveled bits of our lives and making them new again. With your living water, there is no need to wither and die. By the power of your Holy Spirit, we can always flourish in your garden!

Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.” [John 4:13-14 (NLT)]

Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, “Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.” [John 7:38 (NLT)]

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March 20, 2015

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Attitudes & Behavior, Challenges & Difficulty, Family, Friends & Fellowship, God's Grace & Love, Holidays & Holy Days, Joy, Nature, Today: Make it Count

IN THE BLEAK MIDWINTER – for the First Day of Spring

O Lord, God of my salvation, I cry out to you by day. I come to you at night. Now hear my prayer; listen to my cry. For my life is full of troubles, and death draws near. … My eyes are blinded by my tears. Each day I beg for your help, O Lord; I lift my hands to you for mercy. [Psalm 88:1-3,9 (NLT)]

3-20-15bleak-r-cropWEBPsalm 88, written by Heman the Ezrahite, was sung to a tune called “The Suffering of Affliction.” Clearly not a light-hearted ditty, this likely could be the most depressing of all the psalms. Written in a state of despair, the only glimmer of hope in the psalm is that the psalmist chose to pray at all. And pray he did, as he poured out his concerns and sorrow to God, the god of his salvation.

Last month, we went walking in a snow storm. It looked like a Psalm 88 kind of day: bleak and dreary with no hope of spring. Except for our parkas and the lone fox we surprised, we could have been in a black and white photograph. As we walked, my mind kept echoing the words, “In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone.”

I remembered a friend’s comment about the way she once viewed life. Bereaved and emotionally numb after some distressing years, she saw the world only in black, white and various shades of grey. Regardless of the weather outside, she remained stuck in a bleak midwinter. While the calendar tells us when seasons change and winter turns to spring, there is no designated date for spring when one is experiencing an emotional winter in life.1494-cropRWEB

Eventually, after making a concerted effort to move out of the bleakness of winter, spring arrived for my friend. Once again she saw the world in its amazing Technicolor. As she prayed, her faith strengthened and she moved out of isolation into God’s love. She cautiously stepped out of her lonely sorrow and into new friendships. With the warmth of God’s love and Christian fellowship, she again grew and blossomed, much as a spring flower does after winter. As color came back into her life, she brought color into the lives of those she met.

Jesus brought sight to the blind; not all the blind, however, are visually impaired. Many, like my friend, are temporarily blinded by their tears. If that is you, reach out to God in prayer and to your brothers and sisters in Christ. If not, do you know someone who needs the warmth of Christian fellowship to break the ice in their hearts? Is there someone who needs to experience some of God’s loving grace so they can, once again, experience spring and the world in full color? Is there someone who needs to know the rest of the song’s words: that the answer is in Jesus Christ?

“In the Bleak Midwinter” [Christina Rossetti (1872)]

In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
In the bleak midwinter, long ago.
Our God, Heaven cannot hold Him, nor earth sustain;
Heaven and earth shall flee away when He comes to reign.
In the bleak midwinter a stable place sufficed
The Lord God Almighty, Jesus Christ. …
What can I give Him, poor as I am?
If I were a shepherd, I would bring a lamb;
If I were a Wise Man, I would do my part;
Yet what I can I give Him: give my heart.

In that day the deaf will hear words read from a book, and the blind will see through the gloom and darkness. [Isaiah 29:18 (NLT)]

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January 12, 2015

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Fruit of the Spirit, God's Plan, Nature, Sharing Our Faith, Today: Make it Count, Wisdom & Guidance

WE CONTINUE TO FLOURISH IN HIS GARDEN

But good people will grow like palm trees; they will be tall like the cedars of Lebanon. Like trees planted in the Temple of the Lord, they will grow strong in the courtyards of our God. When they are old, they will still produce fruit; they will be healthy and fresh. They will say that the Lord is good. He is my Rock, and there is no wrong in him. [Psalm 92:12-15 (NCV)]

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Bald Cypress – Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Some of the old-growth cypress trees in Corkscrew Swamp are nearly 600 years old. They’re just youngsters compared to a bristlecone pine tree in California that’s still alive and growing at over 5,000 years of age. That’s nothing compared to a Norway spruce in Sweden with a root system that has been growing for over 9,500 years. Granted, these old trees aren’t that beautiful anymore; time and weather have taken their toll, but they still stand strong. If these trees can continue to flourish in their old age, I guess we can, too.

In God’s world, we are never too old to grow, blossom and even bear fruit. There is much we can share with those younger than us. More important, there is much we can still be taught by those both older and younger than ourselves. We’re never too old to learn something new!

Lord, help us all to continue to thrive in your garden and to bear fruit among your people.

Teach older men to be self-controlled, serious, wise, strong in faith, in love, and in patience. In the same way, teach older women to be holy in their behavior, not speaking against others or enslaved to too much wine, but teaching what is good. … In every way be an example of doing good deeds. When you teach, do it with honesty and seriousness. [Titus 2:2-3,7 (NCV)]

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December 4, 2014

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Bible Stories, God's Word: The Bible, Nature, Sharing Our Faith

IT’S NOT A DEAL BREAKER! (Genesis, part 1)

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All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. [2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NLT)]

For some people, the Book of Genesis keeps them from becoming Christians. “How can you possibly believe it all happened in six days?” they ask. Because they can’t reconcile apparent contradictions between science and Genesis’ story of creation, they reject the entire Bible. To borrow my mother’s phrase, “That’s like throwing out the baby with the bath water!”

The accuracy of the creation story can bring about heated discussions but, for me at least, it is a nonessential debate. Let the creationists and evolutionists, the fundamentalists and liberals, the scientists and theologians argue all they want. I’ve chosen not to become preoccupied with the cosmology, biology and geology of the creation story. Whether the creation of our world took six twenty-four hour days or six million year days is not the foundation of my faith. I’ve seen models of DNA, taken astronomy, studied biology and geology and I can’t really understand, let alone explain, the big bang theory, black holes, geologic eras, gene mutation, or evolution. I would hardly expect ancient people to understand these concepts. Genesis is not a book of science; it is a book of theology! The Bible’s purpose is not to be a scientific document; its purpose is to tell us about God and its ultimate goal is our salvation.

I accept the Book of Genesis as the word of God told in such a way that His people could understand and comprehend its meaning. Many others, however, have more fundamental or more liberal interpretations. While we may disagree about the exactness of the creation story as told in Genesis, this disagreement should never keep us from agreeing about the important things like sin, forgiveness, redemption, salvation, love, faith, resurrection and the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Our purpose is not to win people to our interpretation of Genesis; our purpose is to win people for God!

The Lord merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the word, and all the stars were born. He assigned the sea its boundaries and locked the oceans in vast reservoirs. Let the whole world fear the Lord, and let everyone stand in awe of him. For when he spoke, the world began! It appeared at his command. [Psalm 33:6-9 (NLT)]