THE HAWK AND THE DOVE

Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8 (NAS)

The spring brought a variety of birds to my feeder. With delight one morning, I noticed a pair of Mourning Doves feeding. I heard their gentle cooing and hoped they would nest nearby.

Shortly after going inside, the shrill call of a hawk shattered my peace. I rushed out to the deck hoping to scare off the enemy—a red-tailed hawk I had seen about the woods. He was nowhere in sight. All the birds vanished by instinct as they do when a hawk’s shadow darkens the sky.

I knew the enemy was close, watching and waiting his chance to pierce the beautiful breast of the dove with his sharp talons.

We also have an enemy who constantly seeks an opportunity to pierce our souls. We don’t rely on instinct to save us. We have the Holy Spirit.

My thoughts turned to prayer.

This is life on earth.

This is survival.
This is not the way You planned it to be, God.
But, sin . . .
Satan, looking for an opportunity, found it in weakness, in a thoughtless moment in the garden.
My hope is in Your promise, fulfilled when You rose from the tomb. There will be a new day where sin no longer destroys what was meant for beauty and peace.

The hawk will live in harmony with the dove. We will no longer be plagued by the enemy.

Help us walk with You and live in the peace You planned for us. Thank You for the promise of a new heaven and earth where our joy will not be threatened by the enemy.

©2019 Bonnie Mae Evans

THE CROSS ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD

Prepare the highway for my people to return, smooth out the road, and raise a flag for all the nations to see. Isaiah 62:10 (NLT)
We have all seen the crosses on the side of the road for those who have lost their lives in a traffic accident.

We do not know the beliefs of the roadside deceased, but their family or friends chose the Christian cross of Jesus to mark the end of their earthly existence.

We are not here to judge those travelers who died so suddenly as the causes could have been many: speed, substance abuse, texting, weather, road conditions, sleep deprivation or mechanical failure. For now they are in the hands of our Creator, and hopefully on a bright shining highway to a suite in His heavenly mansion, and not on a lonely, dark road detour to a rundown motel room.

Let these roadside crosses give us pause to contemplate our own fate and how quickly our lives can be lost in an instant. So slow down and say a little prayer for those roadside cross bearers as you pass by, and pray that we stay on the living Cross Road of Jesus, taking us into his kingdom.


Heavenly Father, watch over us on the highways and byways of life, and enable us to hear Your voice over the clamor and confusion of our fast paced daily activities.

© 2018 David Le Kites

LOVE GOES 'ROUND

We love, because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19 (NAS)

On a scorching hot day in July, a cat came out of the woods surrounding our home. She was tiny, starving and feral—as the mobile vet said, "Obviously born in the wild."

Although dehydrated and very hungry, even food and water could not draw her near. I left bowls outside and watched from the window as she devoured every morsel and drop. After months of coaxing, feeding and inching closer, I was finally able to lightly touch her back. That was the breakthrough. Each day I rubbed her fur a little longer. Finally, she came into the safety of the porch at night, leaving at daybreak.

Winter approached and temperatures dipped to near freezing. I was concerned. One day she ventured through the porch door and briefly into the house—that was a beginning.

At last the day came when “Sydney” came in and stayed. She joined our other cats and adjusted well. That was four years ago.

She learned there was comfort, rest and daily nourishment. More importantly, she learned there was love and acceptance and consequently turned into quite the little love-bug.

Sydney has all she needs and is able to give affection in return.

As humans in need of a Savior, we are much the same way. We need all these things, but fear makes us hesitant to receive. Some of us take years to accept the free gift of salvation and find rest for our weary souls. When at last we do, we are relieved to find all our needs met by a loving Father. Only then, are we able to pass His love on to others.

Father, thank You for loving us and showing us how to love others. 

© 2017 Bonnie Mae Evans