“Battle with the Birds”

By Dianne E. Butts –

A family of birds is trying to build a nest underneath our second-story deck. We’ve had nests built there before. We wouldn’t mind it so much if the birds were better house guests. But their, eh-hem, “droppings” run down the windows of the basement-level family room and mud and sticks litter the porch. And they are not quiet neighbors.

All this meant my husband took on the challenge this year of discouraging them from build a nest underneath our deck. Turns out, just knocking their nest down once or twice was not going to be near enough to discourage them from building there.

My husband has been knocking their nest-building down and sweeping it off our porch, several times a day for at least a week. Every time he does, he gets scolded by that Father bird.

We have an odd board jutting across the bottom of the deck at an angle. I guess Mr. and Mrs. Bird think this is the perfect platform to put their nest on. Tucked up high, next to the house. A nicely protected location. After knocking it down numerous times, we finally found a garden gnome to set in its place. Problem solved, right? Nope. The Birds just moved down the board and started building again in the next open slot. Just as high, now not against the house, but apparently the second best location.

I raided the shed and we ended up setting all my little fake garden friends (a frog, squirrel, angel, two gophers (one with sunglasses), a rabbit) and several plastic pots along the rest of the board. The Birds keep building on top of the frog. Beside the gnome. Around the newspaper I wadded and stuffed up there to take up the space.

Persistent little creatures, aren’t they?!

I’ll admit it. At first I felt sorry for the Birds. Would they find another place to build and raise their young? I don’t feel sorry so much for them anymore. They have the whole wide world to build their nest in. Why are they so darned insistent in building it under our deck?

I put a nice, solid basket in the backyard aspen tree. It fits perfectly between branches. I put some of their nestings in it. A perfect place for a bird nest if you ask me. But no, they don’t go near it.

I keep wondering isn’t Mrs. Bird getting desperate to lay her eggs? How long can they keep putting off finding a place to build their nest where it will remain intact? Seems like she’d start nagging Mr. Bird by now about finding another location.

But persistent Mr. Bird just keeps building. So here we are still knocking down their efforts several times a day.

Mr. Bird is determined to build Mrs. Bird their dream home under our deck. My husband is just as determined that he will not. I’m betting on my husband to win the battle.

Isn’t it nice to know we have a Father Who is every bit as persistent in pursuing us?

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26, NIV)

Rover Knows Best

By Candace McQuain –

Take a lesson from a dog. Yes, a dog.

For anyone who has ever owned one, you know exactly what I mean. Dogs love their owners unconditionally. Dogs love their owners no matter what. They never get angry, hold resentment or turn their back on the ones they love. They only have one behavioral mode when it comes to their owners and that is to love them unconditionally.

Now when it comes to chewing up your favorite pair of shoes or messing in the house, well that’s a whole other story.

Just as with His canine creation, God has equipped His children to have that same capability to love unconditionally. He has pre-programmed our hearts with this ability and has provided very clear instruction on how to use it. Romans 12 (NIV) is sprinkled with powerful messages of unconditional love. Verse 10 states, “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” Verse 16 says, “Live in harmony with one another.” Then there is Ephesians 4:31-33 (NIV), which brings it all home, “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (emphasis mine). I wish I had known these incredibly relevant pieces of Scripture the many times I spoke out of anger, held harsh grudges and judged people as if I were God himself.

Why do we do this to others and ourselves?

Pride.

Pride can make it very difficult to admit when we are wrong or apologize without a “but.” For me, when I apologized with a “but,” what I was saying was, “Yes I’m sorry and I love you, but I had good reason for doing what I did.” The truth is, there is never a good reason to hurt anyone. Sincerely apologizing and asking for forgiveness will not only heal a wound you didn’t think was healable but it is what God expects from us.

On the flip side, maybe the area you struggle with is forgiving others. Sometimes we find it’s just easier to hold on to the resentment. If we forgive, we give up the right to retaliate and our weary heart could be exposed to more hurt.

Thank goodness our God does not think along these lines and that when we go to Him for forgiveness and love, we get it, and it doesn’t come with a “but.” Letting go of resentment and opening our hearts should not be a hindrance, but God-given relief.

Through God we have the power to transform relationships, and forgiveness is at the core of that transformation, and that my friend, is love that is clearly unconditional. I believe good ole’ Rover would agree.

When Life Splashes Mud

By Pam Kumpe –

When people annoy you, what’s your response?

During a late winter snow storm as I puttered to work in my car, this woman came racing past me in her SUV, splashing muddy water from the pothole onto my car. As she disappeared into the distance, did I lift her up in prayer? Or did I utter words I’ll not share?

What if I learned she was a single mother who had finished a ten hour shift, and she was rushing home to cook dinner, help with homework, do the laundry and spend a few precious moments with her five children?

Would this change my response? Would I have prayed for her?

This same week I remember seeing a young man, pierced, tattooed, seemingly disinterested, standing in line in front of me in the grocery store. He couldn’t make change correctly or fast enough to suit me.

What if I discovered he was a worried 19-year-old college student balancing his fear of those final exams with a worry of not qualifying for his student loans the next semester?

Would this change my response when I watched him count his pennies?

A few years ago, a scary looking bum wearing a trench coat begged for money behind my car. He was in the same spot every day, and I wondered why he wasn’t applying for a real job.

Now what if I heard this bum’s father had died a horrible death, and this caused him to start using over the counter medicine to cover his pain, only for it to become an addiction? What if I heard his worst nightmares of being addicted to street drugs came with this journey?

Would this change my response? Would I have even considered praying for him?

What about those slow walking couples who shop together in the store? Ever got stuck with them? They block my attempts to rush in and out of the store.

Now what if I overheard one of those couples talking about the biopsy report the wife got back last week? What if they looked at each other with tears, and talked about how this will be the last year they go shopping together?

Would this piece of information change my response? Would it?

When I hurry past someone, without thinking of where, what or how he or she is dealing with life, I believe I miss why we’re here. Aren’t we designed for relationships, for caring and loving others, so why do we forget to do this?

My prayer is that God opens my heart, not to only those close to me, but to those who are struggling, to those on the corner, to those in the store, to those I’ll see today. Offering up a prayer is something I can do anytime, anywhere, even now.

I want to be slower in judging, and quicker to forgive, and I must ask God for the patience to see others with a heart of love and compassion.

As I think about this, I can only wonder what you thought about when I splashed mud on your car. Or how you reacted when I held up the line in the store? Or when I took too long shopping for the right cookies? Or when I took your parking spot?

But wait, if you knew more about me, knew my heart, my struggles, my dreams, and my hopes, would it change how you respond?

God says in II Chronicles 7:14 that if we, who are called by God’s name will humble ourselves, pray and seek His face, plus turn from our wicked ways, He will forgive our sins and bring healing our way.

So, when life splashes mud your way, try a new response: Seek God’s face, eat a cookie and pray. And don’t forget to enjoy the day because some day you’ll find yourself taking the final walk in the shopping aisle of life—and you might as well have fun along the way.

What Is Temptation?

By Warren Mueller –

Have you ever wondered about the temptation of Jesus by the devil in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-10)? The Bible says God does not tempt anyone and cannot be tempted (James 1:13).   Furthermore, Jesus was tempted “in every way just as we are—yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15). Since Jesus is both God and human, how can these verses be reconciled?

Webster’s Dictionary defines tempt as to test or to try to persuade, induce, entice, allure, especially to something sensuously pleasurable or immoral; to provoke. The Greek word peirazo used in the previous verses means to test, entice, examine, prove or test. In both of these definitions, there is the dual sense of a trial and enticement to do evil. Jesus fasted for forty days in the wilderness before the devil tempted him three times. The first time, the devil enticed him to turn rocks into bread which appealed to his hunger. The second time, the devil tried to use Scripture to trick Jesus and so tested his knowledge of the word. The third time, the devil offered Jesus all the kingdoms of the world if he would worship the devil which was a spiritual attack to short cut God’s plan of redemption. The devil tempted Jesus physically, mentally and spiritually to put his needs first instead of choosing the path set before him by God the Father. Thus, the actual underlying temptation was whether Jesus would assert his will or be obedient to that of his Father. This is the essence of the trial aspect of the temptation.

The enticement to do evil involved: 1) appeasing the flesh in replacing his hunger pains with the pleasure of food (and a full stomach); 2) appealing to his mind to assert himself as king by commanding angels to save him from a fall; and 3) worshipping the devil in exchange for being king of the world would be an enticement to short cut God’s plan of redemption and avoid the cross (i.e. spiritual separation from the Father as sin bearer).

This explains how Jesus could be tempted or tested yet without sin. In other words, he was tested but not persuaded to sin.  Jesus said and did what the Father commanded (John 5:19). Thus, I believe that Jesus could recognize temptation as soon as he was confronted with it because he had a higher view. When we are tempted, we tend to focus on the pleasure (immediate gratification) to be had and rationalize what we know is wrong.  Temptation tends to narrow our view in that we think mainly of ourselves. James says that our desire to do evil leads us to sin which results in death (James 1: 14-15).  Therefore, temptation is a trial or test that has some enticement for self-gratification.   Temptation begins as a test that has some appealing aspect that if entertained and acted on, results in sin. Temptation in and of itself is not evil but it ends in sin when we choose immediate pleasure despite the consequences and choose self rather than God. Jesus was tempted or tested but he did not allow the temptation to progress to sin.

Lord Jesus please help us to see you in everything we think, say and do so that we will not focus on ourselves and our desires.  Help us to run the race of life with our eyes fixed on you and always ask, “What would Jesus do and how can I please you?”

These are the Days

By Heather Arbuckle –

“This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24 NIV).

I am not a big fan of Daylight Savings Time. It’s probably because I am not exactly what you would call “a morning person.” Somehow, with the time change, morning seems earlier. Waking up to a dark house and stumbling over to the coffee pot makes me long for a bit more time underneath my covers. At least enough time for the sun to catch up with my day.

Finally, the coffee is done brewing and I sit down to take a few moments before my kids wake up to begin their morning rituals. The sky is still dark, but the birds are singing. The house is still. And it is like God is whispering, “These are the days. Rejoice. Don’t miss it!”

So I think it over and I understand. These ARE the days…

When my daughters bring me “flowers” that resemble weeds, but are presented with great joy and love.

When my son is still shorter than me and will allow me to hug him in front of his friends.

When my husband kisses me on the cheek gently before he leaves for his job, even earlier than the birds are willing to awaken.

These are the days…

Today, I get to go out and be the hands and feet of Jesus. Speak words of affirmation and encouragement. Show my family how lucky they make me feel. Thank God for His many blessings.

Now, my kids are stirring and my quiet house is filled with the sounds of them  getting dressed and packing their lunches for school. I rejoice for our day together has begun. And I remember to embrace this moment.

For these are the days…

Of my daughter singing to Jesus while she ties her shoes.

Of my son assisting his sister with a glass of milk, while I get a glimpse of the man he will one day become.

Of kisses good-bye and big, bright smiles as my girls ride off to school on their scooters.

Of stolen moments with my teenage man-child, as he shares his thoughts and it is just him and me.

Of phone calls from my busy husband, who calls just to hear my voice.

These are the days. So wake up slowly if you must. Grab some coffee and take a moment to listen to the birds. But then rejoice, for you will never get today back again. And even when you are walking in darkness, there are reasons to embrace the beautiful gift of today.

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