Wednesday Treasures in the Great Outdoors!

 Oh what a delight to see these squash plants finally blooming in our little garden!  

The Yellow Squash, a.k.a. Summer Squash, seem to be perking up and looking healthier!

And the Zucchini is also blooming!  Woohoo!! We just might have squash one of these days!!!

I decided to get some Miracle Grow and start fertilizing my plants.  I no longer have one of those Miracle Grow sprayer bottles that you attach to a hose...guess it got lost along the way. But I have this wonderful sprinkler can, and I followed the directions on the box and watered all the vegetable plants and also my blueberry bush(es). One bush is growing beautifully, but I have others that I planted a few years ago that haven't done anything, so hopefully the fertilizer will help them too.

It will be such fun to see if we really do get to harvest a crop of veggies this year.  Oh, the tomato plants are starting to bloom too, but I didn't get a picture of them.

So this afternoon I went outside to sit on the garden bench, and Blackie came  to join me. At first he sat on the ground at my feet, but then he heard those "bad" neighborhood dogs barking in the distance, and he got really nervous, and jumped right up on the bench and snuggled up to me.  The good news is it appears that the "dog family" is actually moving today! They have been loading up a U-Haul truck and making trips somewhere throughout the day...so hopefully the "bad" dogs will be moving away. I do hope they have found a house with a good fenced yard so the dogs can run freely.  They really aren't "bad dogs", they just had a bad home situation. Once they are gone from the neighborhood I think Blackie will breathe a lot easier! 

Anway, we were enjoying sitting in the shade and listening to the birds...

And WATCHING the birds!  There's Daddy Bluebird on top of the birdhouse now, with a mouth full of food to feed the babies inside...

There he goes inside.  He and Mama Bluebird are staying quite busy these days as a tag team of keeping those hungry babies fed. I have a feeling they will be leaving the nest very soon.

But the Bluebirds weren't the only birds we were watching today...look up there in that pine tree on the island:

Do you see him?  That's a Wood Stork!!

I had to zoom in on him with my "real camera" so I could get a better look:

Here's more information about the Wood Stork

Yes, it's a Wood Stork all right!

And here is another one, way over on the other side of the still very dry 'Still Waters Pond'...

He's over there where there is a little bit of water, and the big birds like to congregate there to get some water and food...

In a little while he flew overhead...this is not my picture, but isn't he beautiful in flight?

Internet Photo, but this is  how he looked flying over us.

Meanwhile, the Sand Hill Cranes were also out there, and this one was walking across the "pond" letting the birds know whose territory this is.  I could hear his mate calling from the other side of the island. Yes, they still come here every day, even though they weren't able to maintain a nest and have any babies this year due to the lack of water in the pond.

One of our resident Sand Hill Cranes

Oh wait!  The show's not over yet! Up there in those same pine trees on the island is another big bird!

That's a Great Blue Heron sitting up there as pretty as he pleases!  No wonder the Cranes were making a lot of noise!  They don't like all these intruders to their territory!

Great Blue Heron up in the pine tree!

Isn't he amazing?

So even though our pond is basically a wasteland this spring, the birds still come and make use of whatever water and perching places they can find!  That is a blessing to me to see that life goes on here in spite of the drought!

Here are some words of hope and encouragement from God's Word about His care for us even during periods of drought or famine. This could also apply to periods of "spiritual drought"...when we are feeling drained and lost and our spirits are dry because of times of grief or sickness or disappointment.

Isaiah 58:11 NKJV

11 The Lord will guide you continually,

And satisfy your soul in drought,

And strengthen your bones;

You shall be like a watered garden,

And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.

Jeremiah 17:7-9 NKJV

7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,

And whose hope is the Lord.

8 For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters,

Which spreads out its roots by the river,

And will not fear when heat comes;

But its leaf will be green,

And will not be anxious in the year of drought,

Nor will cease from yielding fruit."

Psalm 33:18-19 NKJV

18 Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him,

On those who hope in His mercy,

19 To deliver their soul from death,

And to keep them alive in famine.

When we keep our eyes on the Lord and put our trust and hope in Him, He will carry us through those lean times and seasons of spiritual drought.  Those times come to all of us at one time or another in life...we all go through different kinds of seasons...times of prosperity and peace and fullness of joy, and times of deep sorrow or sickness or loss.  It's good to have a firm foundation in our relationship with Christ to carry us through those times.  Getting into His Word, the Bible, is the best way to find those words of hope when we need them most.  However, we shouldn't wait until we are groping in the darkness to try and find the light. Now is the time to store up His Word in our hearts while there is the light of day to see and learn...and then His Word will be there deep inside us when we need it most.

Psalm 119:105  KJV

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path."

Psalm 119:11 NKJV

11 Your word I have hidden in my heart,

That I might not sin against You.

Psalm 119:50 NKJV

50 This is my comfort in my affliction,

For Your word has given me life.

Honestly, I had not planned on going down this road tonight, but this is the way the Lord has led me to write. Perhaps there's someone out there who needs these words from God's Word tonight. I hope this is helpful to you.  Yesterday in the Tuesday 4 meme we were asked about different things that were "simply the best", and the question was asked about which book was the best book I've ever read...and my answer was "The Bible".  I know I wasn't the only one who felt the same way.  And this is why...because there is no other place where we can find such hope and help in time of need.

Prior to Christ's crucifixion there were some followers who decided to turn away from him because things that He taught them were just too hard for them to understand...and so here Jesus is talking to the twelve disciples...

John 6:67-69 NKJV

7 Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?”

68 But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

And that's what I believe...God's Word is where we will find "the words of eternal life".  There can be no greater words than this. Other philosophers and teachers and prophets may have wisdom and good thoughts to share that are helpful and encouraging, but none can compare to the Living Word of God found in The Bible.  

And so if you find yourself in a "drought"  or season of grief or sorrow or sickness, perhaps you may want to drink from the well of "living water" that Jesus was telling the Samaritan woman about in John chapter 4...

13 Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, 

14 but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Well, if you made it this far in reading, thank you. My prayer is that this will helpful and encouraging in some way for each and every one of us. You are all very precious in God's sight...

Tomorrow we are taking a little ride to go meet hubby's brother and family for lunch and to have an early celebration of their daughter Shannon's 23rd birthday. It's not until later in May, but they will be on vacation or just really busy in May, and so we try to get together whenever we all are free...and we celebrate  whenever we can! Life is precious!!   Thankfully Benton and Rose will be going with us too.  So I'll have more to share later on.  

Good Night my friends.