“Our sorrows are all, like ourselves, mortal.
There are no immortal sorrows for immortal souls.
They come, but blessed be God, they also go.
Like birds of the air, they fly over our heads.
But they cannot make their abode in our souls.
We suffer today, but we shall rejoice tomorrow.”
Charles Spurgeon
Sitting here, in front of the cozy fire in my parlour, I have just finished reading my Bible and some encouraging words to begin the day. Outside the window, in the tall pine trees, I can hear the lonesome sound of our Mourning Doves, who, after a long winter, have returned to make their nest in the same tree as the year before. Have you noticed some familiar birds returning to your property? I believe there are beautiful things to see all the time – we just have to look for them.
“Keep your antennas up,” as my dad would say.
Noticing the returning of our silver-laced Mourning Doves was something all the children saw yesterday, as we sat around the breakfast table with bowls filled with steaming hot butter-and-honey oatmeal.
“They’re back, mommy,” my little Lovelyn said, pointing out the window that faces two old pines trees that sit right next to our kitchen. She pressed her face against the window pane and stretched to look to the top of the bushy tree. “I bet they will be making a nest soon again!”
I’m constantly encouraging the children to look deeper throughout their day, notice something that no one else will notice, watch for expressions in people’s faces, take note of different birds flying through the sky, notice the first bud on the Silver Maple tree in the barnyard, pay attention to the changing weather and the clouds drifting by … will it rain today or snow? Have you looked at the gorgeous moon lately and noticed what lunar phase we are in?
“Devote yourselves to prayer,
being watchful and thankful.”
Colossians 4:2
In the mudroom at the back of the house, we have an incubator, humming away … inside, little chicks are forming from my daughter’s collection of chicken eggs.
“Guess what day they will hatch, mommy?” she said, with delight as she fingers the delicate eggs tenderly. “Sunday! It’s going to be a great day! Look, I can see his beak!”
She holds her egg up to a light so we can all ohh and ahh over the tiny chick wiggling within it’s shell … truly, a little miracle … I do not think we should grow so old, so jaded and dried up as to not think of a new life forming inside a tiny chicken egg as a miracle. Yesterday, a the girls and I drove to the local tractor supply store, we stopped to marvel at all the birds who were returning to a local pond. It’s still chilly outside, melting snow still covers the ground, but these wonderful birds know it’s still time to return home to make their nests and prepare for their new season.
Who guides these magnificent birds to and from in their migrating season? God.
Who made that chick? God.
Who brought the sweet Morning Doves back to their same weathered nest outside our kitchen window every spring? Who helps our little seeds to sprout in the warmth of the soil-filled trays, sitting in our kitchen?
God.
“Oh Mommy, I wanted to tell you … while we were swinging on the swings, I looked up and saw a swan flying over head,” my eldest daughter told me later that afternoon, as we were preparing dinner together. She knows I love to hear these facts about the day.
A wild swan! Incredible! Soon, we will all pack up in the truck and go to the local pond and watch and wait and see if we can spot some swans gathering. Last year, we were blessed to see two Trumpeter Swans in a neighbour field. They were absolutely gorgeous.
This Creator of Heaven and earth … He is majestic and wonderful. Nature points to His glory all around us – even in the muddiest, gross season of snow-melting in Ontario. There is very little actual pretty scenery to look at outside right now, but if one is slow and quiet, you will hear the song of the cardinal, the low mournful call of the Mourning Doves … you may even here the dripping of melting snow … this old snow melts away to showcase a vast muddy, dirty bare ground … but we all know … soon, lush green grass will grow, beautiful vibrant flowers will spring up and the grey skies will magically turn vivid blue filled with fluffy clouds. Magnificent white swans will return, naked trees will be clothed in beautiful green leaves and new life will spring forth.
Last night, after a very grey, dreary day, burdened with heavy adult concerns, we cleaned up the supper dishes and looked out the front windows to see a beautiful rain began to peacefully fall. Suddenly, there, spread across a gloomy sky, was the most lovely rainbow spread forth in all its glory. Rainbows in March are not common around here. It was a welcomed sight for us all – and again, it is a promise from God!
{a rainbow from another season}
No matter what season we are in – whether it is one we can barely bear alone on our frail human shoulders or one filled with delight and joy – we know God is in it. He will never fail us. In our darkest days, He will never leave us. Today, I want to look for those delicate, nearly-hidden details in my day that point to an amazing, Holy Creator … who is watching over me.
25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
by Gigi
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