A Midweek Thought

     Our usually quiet neighborhood is a bustle of noise this morning. I am sitting outside on our back deck, enjoying the cool breeze and sunshine, watching the dragonflies flitter around me - oh! One just landed on my computer! :) A lawn mower is loudly interrupting my quiet time, as well as some shouting from the neighbor's house behind us. Yet, the sound I hear most often is the angry chattering of the birds as they try to scare the hawks away from their nesting area.

     Yes, the hawks have returned to the same nest this year and have been obnoxiously disrupting the peace surrounding our home. Usually it is my children that make so much noise outside, but not this year. I am constantly hearing the angry robins twittering at the hawk someone nearby. (There he goes again!) Today I watched the hawk come flying around the corner of my house with a long snake dangling from his talons. A red-wing black bird was not far behind as he landed in a tree to munch away at his meal. Shouting from the house behind us frightened him and he took off to a different tree, dropped the snake, and went down to get it. Another hawk, a baby I assume, flew down to try and help him eat it, but he did not like that idea. With a little hop and a spread of his giant wings, he took off into the woods to finish his breakfast. The other hawk did not know what to do. He ran over to the stream and began wading in the water, maybe hoping to find a frog or something that would be able to grab without having to dive bomb his meal. He proceeded to enter the woods on foot to who-knows where, but judging by the sound of the angry birds, he is not too far away. 

     The other day I watched as a beautiful Oriel actually attacked the hawk, who was just sitting in a tree trying to ignore the tiny bird hitting him. It made me stare in wonder at how such a little bird would not be afraid to stand up to such a large enemy, who at any moment could have snatched him for his next meal. It made me think for a moment, at how cowardly I am inside when it comes to fighting back at the enemy who lurks in the woods of my life. God has placed an instinct inside these little birds to do what they must in order to survive. They fight with all their strength, protecting their families from the evils that surround them. In order for us Christians to survive, we must do the same. We need to fight the enemy with all our strength, doing what we must to frighten the enemy away. We should not ignore the instinct, or the Holy Spirit, Who is inside us, moving us to do what is right, no matter how hard our flesh may fight it. I want to be like that little bird and scare away the enemy, the devil. And it is by reading and knowing the Scriptures that we will get to be victorious when it comes to dealing with him. God bless, and enjoy the rest of your week!   

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