What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?

What Do You See Outside YOUR Open Window Today?
Remember: "When God closes a door, He always opens a window!" You never know what might be out there waiting for you!

Friday, October 19, 2018

Friday Foto Friends - Birds of a Feather and other Wild-life...and Sermon Notes!

Hello Friday Foto Friends! I hope you have had a good week, and that God has blessed you with beauty surrounding you everywhere you look.  Perhaps even some surprises and fun to top it off.
That is what it's been like here...
Let's start out with these "Birds of a feather who flock together"
The Sand Hill Crane Family
Yes this is our same family that we have been watching all year long since mother crane was sitting on the eggs in the nest...and now here they are in my back yard. Not sure who's who, but the "babies"  (colts) are still maybe just a little smaller and don't have as red of a head yet...


 They were all pecking away at the dirt, looking for grubs, worms, bugs...not sure exactly what as that is a rather dry and desolate piece of sandlot...but they seemed to enjoy themselves pecking away at something.


Then I moved over to our neighborhood pond, and saw this beautiful white egret enjoying some morning sunshine...


 Perhaps she was also checking out her reflection in the "mirror" on the water...

The sun was shining very brightly on the water, and this lone water lily was literally glowing in the sunshine. I love how its petals are reflected in the water...

Yes, that is its reflection underneath...pretty awesome, huh?

Now, this is an interesting story.  During the week we paid a visit to my mother-in-law's house, (who passed away in August), which is in the process of being renovated and prepared to be sold eventually.  Everything that belonged to my mother in law personally has been removed from the house, and it is getting a complete makeover. When it is finished I will take pictures and perhaps show some before and after photos.

Anyway, as I walked around her yard I discovered this little cement squirrel tossed over in the bushes. I recognized him at once as the little "squirrel" that "Nanny" had always kept in the center of her birdbath in the back yard, and I believe I recall her calling him "Bobby the Squirrel".  So I picked him up and told my brother in law (who is in charge of this renovation project) that "Bobby the Squirrel" was going home with me.
 He agreed, and so I brought "Bobby the Squirrel" home and placed him in the center of my birdbath, right where I can see him from my bedroom window. which is also a part of The Secret Garden. It is rather comforting to see something that reminds me of "Nanny" when I wake up and open up the curtains and welcome in the morning sun. I know she would be pleased to know that "Bobby the Squirrel" has a new home.

 And yes, in case you are wondering, whenever we do finally sell our house and move, "Bobby the Squirrel" will be going with us, and will find a special place in our new yard, wherever that may be...

Now, switching gears a bit...Hubby and I took a walk this morning, and we saw the funniest sight I think we've ever seen.  For those of you who do not live in the south, you may not know what these critters are, but much to our amazement these two armadillos came hurtling down the road, chasing each other, and literally rolling over and on top of each other...not sure if they were mating or fighting or exactly what was going on. Armadillos are nocturnal creatures, so to see one, and especially two running down the road in the daylight was quite a surprise.  The funny thing was, they seemed totally oblivious to us, and just ran right past us, chasing each other. Can you see the tail of the other going into the bushes in this first picture? Well, then they turned around and headed the other way. The one kind of disappeared into the woods, but the other kept running and almost rolling head over heels to keep up...



 Notice below, his hind legs are up in the air...he almost flipped over completely as he was trying to run so fast...
 This is the best close up I could get. As you can see, the armadillo does not win any beauty contests, but it is certainly a fascinating creature.  And these two sure gave us a good laugh this morning. We literally had to jump out of their way!

And Last but not least, we paid a short visit to our Pastor at the church earlier in the week, and noticed this interesting vehicle in the parking lot.

Turns out that it belongs to the Pastor...a specially built vehicle that he enjoys driving around...

I think I could enjoy riding around in this cool car from the past too...

Pretty neat, huh? I think it is a 1947 Chevrolet (customized a bit).  So this is just a tad bit older than me.

And speaking of the Pastor, I know I didn't get the Sermon Notes written this week. Let me give you a brief synopsis. Our lesson was based on Matthew 10:24-31...and the main thrust of the message was from verses 29-31 

29.  "Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin?
And not one of them falls to the ground 
apart from your Father's will.
30.  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
31.  Do not fear therefore; 
You are of more value than many sparrows."

Notes:
  • Most frequent command in the Bible is "Don't be afraid!"  It can be found over 300 times in the Bible.
  • This command can be found more frequently than "Be holy, Do good, Love your neighbor, Don't sin, Don't do evil..."
  • The "dark enemy" tries to stir things up so we will become discouraged.  But God is with us...God is in control.
  • God takes care of the sparrows and knows every hair on our heads, every cell in our bodies.
  • God is intimately involved in our lives.
  • I John 4:18 "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love."
  • I John 4:19 "We love Him because He first loved us."
  • I have not yet been made "perfect in love" BUT I am further than I was...God drives out fear.
  • Don't let fear control our lives.
  • We are afraid of being "unmasked"..."if people really knew us, no one in their right mind would like us"
  • We think that making the right impression is so important...insecurity and fear cause us to give into fear and peer pressure
  • Have faith in God who raised Jesus from the dead!
  • Perfect love drives out fear.  We need to remind ourselves about the Good News of the Resurrection!
  • God is the One Who truly knows us better than we know ourselves.
  • Jesus says, "don't be afraid. "  The Father is pleased to give you the kingdom...Why am I so afraid to follow Him?
  • God gives us grace rather than waiting for us to get our lives together...
  • "Do not be afraid...You are worth more than many sparrows!"
  • Step out and trust the love of God...
  • And Don't be afraid!!
Okay, that pretty well sums it up, I'd say. I hope your week is filled with good surprises, and that you will think about this message when you are tempted to be afraid...or to think that God couldn't possibly love you...Oh yes! He Does!!! You are worth more than many sparrows, my friend! Or Sand Hill Cranes, or White Herons, or even Armadillos! Maybe even more than "Bobby the Squirrel" and 1947 Chevrolet cars...yep! Much much more.

Let's roll on over to Deb's place at Breathing in Grace and see what our other Friday Foto Friends have been up to...

Sermon Notes from FUMC, Interlachen, FL., Pastor A.C. Myers, October 14, 2018.

22 comments:

  1. Great photos of the Sand Hill Crane family. Hard to tell which were the youngsters LOL! This is the first time I've ever seen live photos of armadillos Pamela. Amazing photos of them. Love the Pastor's car and as always enjoyed the sermon. Have a blessed day my friend.

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    1. Thank you, Toni. It is hard to get "live photos" of armadillos. We mostly see them dead alongside the road! To actually see them alive and in action in the daytime is a surprise treat! Glad you enjoyed the pictures and the message!! Have a blessed weekend. I'm trying to get around to visiting everyone.

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    1. Thank you, Vivian! I love being surprised by YOU! Thank you for popping in here for a visit! Now you see what I'm doing when not singing in the choir or chasing deer! I also chase armadillos! LOL.

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  3. I enjoyed the update on the Sandhill family. Kids are growing up fast!
    How cute are those armadillos!! Your pastor seems to have a secret life going on there. Very cool car.

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    1. Ha ha. Our pastor loves old cars and drag racing! It's good to have hobbies when you are in the ministry...it helps to relieve stress and is also a good conversation starter! Yes, the armadillos are "cute" in their own special way. Only another armadillo could love how cute they are.LOL.

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  4. Pam: I didn't realize armadillos were in Florida. You are right, they aren't pretty animals, except to another armadillo, :). Your pastor's car is a tad younger than I. When I was in college, my boyfriend had a car of that era. I thought it was neat that he had one that was from back then. Peace and blessings.

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    1. Oh my yes...we have armadillos all over Florida, at least up in this part. Not sure about way south. Mostly we see them at night and also dead on the road. The vultures find them rather delectable. Thank you for popping in for a visit today. Always wonderful to hear from you...both here and in other places!

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  5. Oh, wow, Pamela, what amazing photos of those elusive armadillos! They are here in Georgia, too, but the only ones I've ever seen were dead on the side of the road. :( And I think it's amazing that the Sandhill family is still together after all this time. Of course, I fell in love with Bobby, as you can well imagine. Maybe I need to look for one of my own and name it Racer. Lol!
    Have a blessed weekend!

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    1. I did think of you when I brought "Bobby the Squirrel" home. Yes, Race would love having him for a playmate, I am sure, although Bobby is rather cold and stiff. LOL. I didn't realize there were armadillos in Ga. I don't recall seeing them there, but maybe we were in the wrong part. (mostly northeastern..too cold and hilly perhaps) These two seemed to have an agenda, and they were quite focused on achieving it...not paying any attention to us at all. It was really quite comical. They would make cute characters in your story! LOL.

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  6. I am going to miss your wildlife photos once you move! I enjoy them so much! Love the squirrel and its new home in your birdbath! Your sermon notes are always comprehensive and uplifting, Pam! Love that car your Pastor drives! Wow!

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    1. I am hoping to always have wildlife photos wherever we go...maybe just different "characters". Time will tell. Glad you enjoyed the squirrel...I am enjoying seeing him outside the window. Forgive me if I find myself talking to him... I know "Nanny" would be pleased to see him getting some "love". Yes, that car is amazing. I didn't get a ride in it yet, but we may have to ask next time...

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  7. For a brief moment I (formerly of Colorado) thought that armadillo was walking on top of snow!!! Silly me! Not here, not in Florida!!!

    Those are the best photos of an armadillo that I've ever seen.

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    1. Yes, our white sand does often make me think of snow...just wish we had some cooler temps to go along with it! ha ha!

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  8. I love all your photo's Pamela. Those Sand Hill Cranes are amazing.

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  9. those sand Hill cranes are amazing and lucky you to get to watch them from eggs to now :) I am so glad you gave BOBBY the squirrel a new home! The armadillos cracked me up we have them here as well love watching when they start to tuck and roll how they click that car is gorgeous lucky you and lucky pastor! I absolutly love the sermon thank you for sharing

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  10. We have the sand hill cranes here in the summer but they all head south for the winter. You got some great shots of them. Glad you gave Bobby a new home. I know Nanny would be proud. I hope some of my grandkids someday have something that reminds them of Nana (me)...lol Too funny about the armadillos. I am so surprised they were out in the daytime. Maybe they are both blind and have their days and nights screwed up? LOL Just a thought! xo Diana

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  11. I absolutely love all the bird photos today and the armadillos too. How wonderful they are all so close to your home and you didn't have to go far to photograph them. I also love the pastor's car. How cool is that? The Sermon Notes hit the spot today too my dear. Have an awesome and blessed weekend. xx

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  12. Thank you so much for all the animal photos. Great. And I love Bobby the Squirrel :-)

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  13. Love the pictures on this pist. Those armadillis are cool looking. Are they mean?

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  14. Ms. Pam, I'm so sorry to just now be commenting. It's feast or famine for me in the blog world these days. I think I need to get off Facebook so I can get back to blogging. I visit it on my phone and it's hard to comment on blogs on it and I don't get on the desktop that often. HOPE you all get your house sold soon. Will there be as much wildlife where you'll be moving to? I bet not. Awesome fotos, as usual. HOPE you have a great day!

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Thank you for visiting here today. I would love for you to sign my guestbook and let me know you stopped by. I always enjoy reading your comments and words of encouragement! May you be blessed as you go on your way. Please come back and visit again soon.