Nature and Scripture

 God has provided so many scenes for us to enjoy in nature. 
                    Come and enjoy some nature photos
          and the Scripture that is paired with the photos. 

                      This photo obviously has nature, but all is not nature.  :)  

I love the colors and peacefulness of this picture. Actually, it was a puddle yet the picture 

looks like there is a cheerful little brook there. 

The fog changes the look of a scene so wonderfully!

A bunny hiding... sometimes we can feel like a bunny 

needing to be protected.

I have taken thousands of sunrise and sunset photos, yet there 

is so much variation.

I had to take this bunny's photo between the slats of the railing.

I liked this picture in its original form, but found I really liked the inverted even better. 

We are enjoying the Orioles this year... such beautiful colors.

Thank you for visiting today. I hope you are enjoying God's creation also. Which picture was your favorite? 

Sometimes it is hard to choose. 

I love enjoying what God has made and I hope you do too, especially in these confusing

days where life has changed so much. God is still good!

Other nature blog post links you may enjoy:

Nature Photos at the Pond

Cardinals Raise Their Young

Black Swans

Hard Times? We All Have Them ...

Are you walking in a hard time? Is life heavy, overwhelming and even scary? 
 

   

Sometimes, the dark path we are walking makes us feel so alone.....

A friend recently lost a loved one and has fears for another... 

  which is certainly a dark path to walk.....

Sometimes the path we walk is painful and frightening... and even more so....

because we feel alone..... 

Praising God isn't magic, but it is what God tells us to do... and it really

does help to change our focus.....  from our problems and pain

to Him and our blessings.... 

We know He hears us if we know Him.... and we know He will make a way for us

even through the pain....

We walk faithfully, even in the hard times, keeping our heart fixed on Him... 

and in His time, He can put a song in our hearts.... 

I hope you can feel and hear those songs of praise to God

even in the hard times.

Thank you for visiting.... and may God remind you of His love for you

as you read His Word and walk with Him... 

Renewed In the Early Morning

                                Renewed In the Early Morning

Early morning is a precious time of peace and quiet
The sun just rising to dispel the fog and chase the shadows
As the morning glories open their brilliance in the dawn
And the birds sing their songs to begin their day

The world is waking up at such a time, yet is quiet still
Like lingering in bed for just a few more minutes
Waking up but remaining hushed in the early morn
A perfect time for reflecting and for praising God

How I enjoy that brief time before the day’s busyness starts
A time to focus on the One who made me and all the earth
A time to thank Him and set my thoughts before the rush
Becomes a time for the peace of the morning to seep into my soul

As I stand on the deck and look at the garden and trees
The distant horizon in view through a bit of fog
And the sun beginning to stream through the trees
It’s rays dispersed in a magical way

The garden with drops of dew on the green plants
That will later feel the heat of the sun
Currently soaks up the moisture and continues to grow
In this time of early morning refreshment

I too feel renewed in those early morning minutes
Soon the sun will gain its full strength for the day
Those early moments of the morning only a fleeting memory
But a memory that will stay with me through the day

My time with God in that quiet place is precious and vital
Reflecting on His Word and praising Him
Fixing my heart on Him as I prepare to walk in the day
Glorifying Him in the day after my dose of early morning with Him

 I hope you have a place to meet with God in the morning or sometime in the day. I couldn't get through the days if I didn't spend time with Him often. I hope you also find strength in your time with Him.
   Thank you for visiting and I would love to hear from you.


          Cheryl, over at Homespun Devotions, recently had a good post that you may be interested in:
10 Ways to Have a More Successful, Effective Prayer Life

The Last of Winter.... I Hope!!!

It has been a LONG winter here. Every time we think it is over, it isn't. I'm sharing some pretty winter pictures and I HOPE I cannot take any more winter ones this year! I sure feel ready for spring.

Last year, I planted some of my garden on February 1 and the year before it was the middle of February. That was very unusual for us, but both years it worked and we enjoyed early crops. This year is different. We still had hard freezes over the weekend and a frost last night and this is the middle of April. I am thankful, though, and I have enjoyed the winter beauty that God has blessed us with and I hope you are enjoying it also.

 These seagulls on the ice caught my attention.














 This guy looked like he was cold!   :) 

 Love the snowy country road....

We moved last fall and we now live in the country... and have a small section of woods, so I loved taking pictures there. One son built a bridge over a dry creek  and it looked pretty after an ice storm.  We really didn't get any snow from that storm... all that you are seeing in this picture is either ice or sleet.

We LOVE being in the country and I will be sharing more pictures. I hope you enjoy country nature scenes also.  I'd love to hear your comments on the pictures if you wish to share any.

Winter was beautiful.... it was just long. Hopefully my next pictures will be spring pics.  :)  Have a great week! 

Severe Storm Clouds

 Storms... they come in our weather. The clouds can be spectacular... and scary.

Storms make a lot of noise and have bright flashing lights. They do the unexpected.

 Sometimes the storms come in quickly... they pop up and rush through the area.

 The sky can turn so dark even in the daytime so that lights need to be turned on.

 These pictures are all from one storm... that took about an hour to come in... the sky kept changing so fast. It was wonderfully amazing. 

I haven't enhanced the color, shadows or brightness on any of the photos on this post. This is what the sky looked like. Like I said, it was amazing!

 I was out when this was coming in and I was snapping pictures... and stopping in parking lots to snap more pictures.

A son called and said he was at a country park near us and the sky was amazing.. and I should come to take pictures there. The view from there was amazing because of the lack of buildings around. However it started to rain, so I just kept taking pictures.

 

This son enjoyed talking with weather spotters who were at the same park where he was and they were watching the clouds because of the severe weather.

We did get heavy rain, lots of wind and lightning and some hail from this storm. It was actually a day of storms... It would do this, then move through, settle down and the sun would come out, then the storms would come through again. The pictures here are from the afternoon storm that day.

 We enjoy watching the storms... and seeing the massive power in such storms. The amazing thing is that God is much more powerful than those storms.

We don't like the damage such a storm can cause, but we enjoy the colors of the clouds, the changing weather, the blustery day when it comes.

Our lives also have storms.. we can see them in the lives of others.. and we don't like to see the damage left behind.... the suffering. We can experience such storms in our life and it can be frightening to be pushed and pulled by such storms. What a blessing that God is stronger than those storms also... and He has promised to be with those who are His.

 How nice when the storms pass on by and the sun comes out again and we can clean up the mess left behind.

We do need to take storms seriously... they can do a lot of damage. This can also be true of the storms in our lives. We can take precautions and do what we can to be safe. Then we ride out the storm, trusting the One who controls those storms. His plan is perfect... even when it includes storms....

Maybe you are going through storms right now... maybe you feel despair and everything looks dark and confusing. I hope you will listen for God's still small voice in the midst of the storm.... and that you will remember His promises. I know I have to do that in my storms..

  He is always faithful, even when we don't understand or like what we are going through.  A kind and encouraging word to others enduring their own storms can be such a help. I know it is to me. May we remember to offer that encouragement when we can.

How beautiful the results can be in the life of one who has faced such bad storms while trusting the Lord.

"What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee." Psalm 56:3

 Thank you for visiting.... If you are going through a storm or have sensed God's work in your life in storms, I would love to hear about it in the comments.  I hope you have a great week.  :)



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Growing In Difficult Times

Difficult times come... for all of us... 

  Many times, we are sure of our salvation... of our eternal destination... we are trusting God....
      So why do we fear in everyday life.... God is God and He is able.....

      What a blessing to know that God is ordering our steps when we walk with Him.... He knows the way before us, even when it is scary or unknown....

As we walk with the Lord and grow in Him, hopefully we will grow in faith ..... and learn to trust Him more and more.

Thank you for visiting...   I hope you will keep practicing trusting in the Lord... I know I will keep working on it. I am so thankful for Him.

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"
 Psalm 27:1


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Baby Birds and Baby Humans

It's almost time to see baby birds again. Every year we watch for them and enjoy the glimpses of the little birds that we sometimes find hidden close to us in unexpected places. The birds are very clever in concealing a nest for their young.

Those little birds do what little birds have done before-they cry out for food, they grow, they learn to fly, they leave the nest, and so on. 

It happens every year, so what is the big deal?









The eggs vary in color, size and pattern. The nests vary in their construction and where they are placed.

 This one was in a burning bush right beside our deck...we had walked by it many times before we even realized it was there. What fun to watch the process from such a great vantage point.

How nice to see the faithful  guarding this robin does for the young...we watched the alertness and the ongoing return to feed those little birds. Eventually they grew and went on their way, to do what God had created them to do...  

This poor young bird on the right, isn't the cutest baby bird I've ever seen. In fact, he? isn't very appealing at all... and yet it was still fun to see a young bird in a needy and clumsy state, knowing that God created this process.

 This little guy was on one of my pots on the deck.... he or she, hopped and jumped around the yard, but then stayed perched here for quite a while... even with us close by. Unusual to be that close, but it was fun for an impromptu home school lesson. :) 


Again I ask, What's the big deal? This happens every year... and they are only birds. That's true, yet the wonderful view of new life and of the orderly creation God has made are such a blessing and we will enjoy it again and again. Some of those birds will be cute and grow to be birds many will admire and enjoy having in their yards. Some will be rather ugly and will grow to be more of a pest in the yard and become something we don't want and are pleased when they move on to a park or somewhere else, where they do what they were created to do. I still find myself amazed at God's creative hand that has made birds and given them the knowledge of when to nest, when to migrate, when to shelter little ones, when to stand guard, when to teach independence.

What about human babies? I am greatly saddened that human babies are thought of by many, as a nuisance... an interference in a life, a piece of tissue to be removed. I am saddened that many see more value in a baby bird than in a baby human. How precious to see a human mother shielding, guarding and protecting her little one as she cares for the needs of that little one. How sad to see a human mother go to take that little one to be removed from being a bother to her, when she should be protecting and shielding that little one, even while the baby is still in the womb. How sad to see the carnage left behind of little ones not loved or protected.

If God gave the birds the ability to take care of their little ones, surely He also gives the ability to human mothers to care for their little ones and not sacrifice them to further their own "happiness".  
 Searching For Happiness

How sad to see the guilt and pain in the hearts of those mothers who believed the lies and sacrificed their child... not because some person says it was wrong, but because deep in their hearts, they know they have lost something precious.

If you have neglected to protect your child, if you have killed your children through abortion, God does forgive and there are those who can help you through the grieving process. If you are considering killing your child, please remember that the precious life you carry needs to be protected, cared for and loved. If you are unable to raise your child, please don't kill him or her... there are places who will help you explore the options that don't lead to murder. 


God can and does give us the strength and courage to defend and protect our children. What a blessing to see a mother faithfully and carefully guarding her little one. That protection begins before the baby is born and a mother is a mother before the baby is born. I hope we will each be the mother God created us to be and that we will protect the young ones who are unable to protect themselves. Thank you for visiting my blog today. 




#birds #mother #abortion #babies #nesting



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