Migration Day!

 What an absolutely wonderful day! I call it Migration Day. See, we call ourselves “accidental bird watchers”. My husband built a pond, years ago and that’s when we discovered that where we live is in the middle of one of the most wonderful migration patterns in the world! Twice a year, people come from everywhere just to watch the birds fly thru! Who knew?

Well, today we had Painted Buntings and Orioles and Warblers, oh my! It was just crazy-busy at the waterfall. And I got to sit here and watch and take waaaaay too many pictures, too! Tomorrow is Easter and this has just been a beautiful display of life moving and going with the seasons.

Since we had no idea about this for so many years, I just love to share the pictures we get and let people know what is flying right over their heads! 

So often people ask why we have them in our yard and they don’t. Well, apparently, by having a pond and putting out a little food, we have invited them over. ;)

Kinda like Jesus…He did, after all make this world we live in, as if He didn’t. 

It is an amazingly beautiful thing, when we offer Him a place to be in our lives, just how He will accept the invitation. It isn’t like He isn’t always around, we just may not be looking for Him…

Anyway, it just got me to thinking about how many lovely things God is doing in this world, but people miss out on it because they don’t know to look up! Oh to live a life so brightly colored with Jesus that those around us look up! Here’s to being a bunting!!!

Romans 10:14-17 ~ The Message Version

But how can people call for help if they don’t know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven’t heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? 

And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it? That’s why Scripture exclaims, A sight to take your breath away! Grand processions of people telling all the good things of God! But not everybody is ready for this, ready to see and hear and act. 

Isaiah asked what we all ask at one time or another: “Does anyone care, God? Is anyone listening and believing a word of it?” The point is: Before you trust, you have to listen. But unless Christ’s Word is preached, there’s nothing to listen to.

PeaceFULLness

 It was soooo very still in the labyrinth yesterday. The fallen bamboo leaves crunched under my feet so loudly I thought I would wake up the neighborhood! But that stillness just made the sweet coo of the whitewing even more tender sounding. At first I thought maybe I should go back for my clippers, too! The duranta and bamboo branches were hanging lowly all over the paths. But, as often happens here, this was just another sweet reminder to slow down, pause and lift the branch, then move on. This Good Friday was peaceFull. Contrary to what Good Friday is all about, I was acutely aware of the peaceFullness of these moments.

Earlier in the week I had written a note to myself and this thought hasn’t finished mulling around in my head. In our busy, distraction based world we somehow think that “if” God has something to say He will get our attention, instead of us giving Him ours. 

This looks different for everyone, for me prayer time in the labyrinth is one way to give Him my full attention…and this day was so very Peace-filled.

PeaceFULLness ~ that was the word (yes, spelled just like that in my head) that came to me in those first few crunchy steps. I just let the whitewing sing me in the door.

It is this PeaceFullness of living with Christ ~ made possible by the void, our souls given over to His sacrifice. He bore it all on the cross –all- not only the sins so obvious to us, the ones so blatantly walking with death, but those in the shadow of death. The Light of His sacrifice reveals those “good” things that tempt and so slyly separate us from Christ.

This Good Friday is the day we remember His sacrifice for us. And He paid for all that lies in our souls that is not of Him, not holy-bound ~ the void He creates in our very souls is where His PeaceFULLness comes to reside. It is where the Fullness of Christ breathes Life into a once sin-sick soul. We have the opportunity in the void to allow God’s will to overflow into us, because He will never manipulate or coerce ~ True Love cannot. We cannot “live” in the void, because death dwells there in its many disguises. True Love, God’s Love, His Grace pours out and heals for the “soul” purpose of a restoration that speaks of its PeaceFullness in Christ ~ the celebration that comes with Easter Sunday!

I John 4:4-6 ~ The Voice Version

My children, you have come from God and have conquered these spirits because the One who lives within you is greater than the one in this world.  But they are of this world, and they articulate the views of the corrupt world, which the world understands.  We come from God, and those who know God hear us. Whoever is not from God will not listen to us. This is the way we discern the difference between the spirit of truth and the spirit of deception.

Swallows

Psalm 84:1-4 ~ The Amplified Version

How lovely are Your tabernacles, O Lord of hosts!

My soul yearns, yes, even pines and is homesick 

for the courts of the Lord;

my heart and my flesh cry out and sing for joy 

to the living God.

Yes, the sparrow has found a house, 

and the swallow a nest for herself, 

where she may lay her young—

even Your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.

Blessed (happy, fortunate, to be envied) are those who dwell in Your house and Your presence; 

they will be singing Your praises all the day long.

Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!

A journal of first thoughts ~

Today, on this very windy day, I was walking the labyrinth and fully intended to read thru the whole of Psalm 84, but oh then Selah happened…with the chachalacas keeping an eye on things.

The picture of the swallow still lingers in my head. This “mom”, of God’s creation, was nesting in the temple. Yet, in those times, birds of all types were given as sacrifices. So, tho’ her home was there in God’s house and her children were to be raised there, there was no safety attached to their physical location. Quite the contrary!

But, verse 4 says, “Blessed” ~ she was blessed to be in Your house and in Your presence, as that is a forever existence, not ending by life here on earth. She will sing her song in Your house, forever in Your presence ~ so, no matter our circumstance, when our soul is nested at Your alter, we are forever blessed to be singing with the swallows.

~ Selah … Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]!