Friday Foto Friends-It's a Wild Life Out Here in the Woods

Dear Friday Foto Friends, Last week I didn't have anything new to share with you...but this week I've hit the jackpot it seems!! It's been a busy week in the wildlife kingdom here in my neck of the woods. Possibly the Full Moon earlier in the week had something to do with it...plus it is springtime, and the critters seem to be feeling frisky...

I was surprised to happen upon the Sand Hill Crane family early one morning out for a stroll...and the baby "colts" have gotten so big it is almost difficult to tell the difference between them and the parents:

 I love that they stick together as a family and now spend their days foraging for food throughout the community, not just around the pond. They are becoming more "sociable"...

Excuse me if you've seen any of these other pictures already, as I may have posted some of them on Facebook this week...but not all of you are there...so here goes...

This is a Swallow Tailed Kite...and I saw him gliding overhead before I could get my camera focused for a picture while in flight.  That was rather frustrating to me, and as I continued my walk down the road I said, "Lord, I wish I could see where that Kite flew ...I've never seen one perching before".  As we walked to the end of our road and then turned around to head back toward home, I looked up in the trees over to my right, and there, pretty as you please, sat this gorgeous white Swallow Tail Kite!!! She/he sat there for the longest time, allowing me to take as many pictures as I wanted. It's too bad it was quite a distance away, and the quality of the photo isn't great, but you get the idea!!

http://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/swallow-tailed-kite

 He even ruffled his feathers for us to see!!  I was praising the Lord and thanking Him all the way back home for hearing my feeble little prayer and answering it so sweetly and quickly!! Our God is an amazing God...if He hears and answers these kinds of requests, just think what He will do with our really important prayers!!!!

And then, a little farther down the road I spied this Great Crested Flycatcher http://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/great-crested-flycatcher  Isn't he a beauty?

Another morning we looked out the front windows and saw this deer having breakfast...

But he wasn't alone...

Thankfully these weren't any important plants/trees they were snacking on.  Just the new growth on some scrub oaks growing profusely in the woods... there's plenty more where those came from...

Even earlier another morning our wildlife camera spied this beautiful bobcat traipsing through our yard!  Or maybe this beautiful bobcat spied our wildlife camera...look at those eyes!

Isn't he magnificent?  Too bad it isn't in color.

Well now: Even earlier on that same morning we had quite a party in the yard!! Not just one, not just two, but THREE bears!!  I believe these two closest to us are twin cubs, and the other to the right is probably their mother, but it is difficult to tell her size...she looks kind of small...so could be another cub. 

These two were pretty interested in the swimming pool, not just for a drink...I think they wanted to stay awhile and play...

But they were pretty thirsty after all...

This one seemed to have a bath in mind...

Hey!!! Where'd every body else go???

I think this must be THE END of the story....

I hope you enjoyed this little walkabout my neighborhood.  We do have some interesting creatures here...so thankful for the natural beauty that God has placed before us to enjoy. Every day is a new day to look forward to.

Maybe this wasn't The End after all...there's always more to the story...

Jesus was preparing His disciples for His departure in John 14:1-6...and they weren't too sure they understood where He was going or how they would be able know the way there as well.   Jesus responded to them in verse 6:

"I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the Father except through Me."

And then in verses 13 & 14 Jesus gives them some other good news:

"And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the son.

If you ask anything in My name, I will do it..."

To give them further comfort about His departure He reassured them this way:

18.  "I will not leave you orphans;

I will come to you.

19.  A little while longer and the world will see Me no more,

but you will see Me.

Because I live, you will live also."

27.  "Peace I leave with you,

My peace I give to you;

not as the world gives do I give to you.

Let not your heart be troubled,

neither let it be afraid."

Okay, Now it's The End of the Story!

Have a blessed and glorious day, my friends!

 Now let us stroll over to Deb's Place at Breathing in Grace and see what our other Friday Foto Friends have been up to.

Prayer: Something New to Ponder UPDATED

5/7/2015:  * Please see the portions below marked by an *, and then go to the end for the update.

Original Post dated 2/15/15:

"Now a leper came to Him (Jesus), imploring Him, kneeling down to Him and saying to Him, 

'If You are willing, You can make me clean.'

Then Jesus, moved with compassion, stretched out His hand and touched him, and said to him,

'I am willing; be cleansed.'

As soon as He had spoken, immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed."

Mark 1:40-42

Wow! Could it really be that simple?  Jesus said...

"And whatever you ask in My Name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

If you ask anything in My Name, I will do it."

John 14:13-14

According to today's reading (February 15) in Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young, Jesus is saying to us, 

"Come to Me with all your weaknesses; physical, emotional, and spiritual.

Rest in the comfort of My Presence,

remembering that nothing is impossible with Me."

(Reference Luke 1:37 ~ "For with God nothing will be impossible.")

Could that really be true, God? Nothing will be impossible?  Dare we put God to the test?

In Matthew 6 Jesus gives us instruction on how to pray...and in verse 8 He says "...your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.

In verses 9-13 we are given word by word instructions, directly from the source, Jesus Christ Himself...the One Who intercedes on our behalf before the Father, so He ought to know the best way to reach God's ear and heart.  Listen (and pray along with me) this beloved and very familiar prayer: (KJV)

"Our Father, which art in heaven,

Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done in earth,
As it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive those that trespass against us.  *
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom,

The power, and the glory,

For ever and ever.

Amen."

In verse 14 Jesus goes on to say, "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."*

It is interesting that Jesus seems to put the emphasis on FORGIVENESS in this prayer...and not just our own personal forgiveness from God...but there seems to be a contingency here...it appears that Jesus is telling us that our trespasses (sins, debts, etc.) will be forgiven by God when "we forgive those that trespass against us."    I discovered another place in the Bible this past week that caught me by surprise...I had never in all my years noticed this passage before...and here it is, in the book of JOB...chapter 42 and verse 10. *

"And the LORD restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends.  Indeed the LORD gave Job twice as much as he had before."*

Anyone who has ever read or heard the story of Job knows that he was tested severely by the devil...and that Job was an extremely righteous man...He never cursed God or lost faith in Him even though he lost everything and suffered severely.  Job's friends were not exactly comforting or helpful. Instead they were constantly critical of Job AND God, even attempting to turn Job away from God. And even though Job himself did not sin throughout this ordeal, it appears that God was waiting for Job to actually pray for his so-called "friends"...and perhaps even forgive them* for their constant negative jibes and ridicule, before He opened the windows of heaven and restored everything to Job~ even twice as much as he had before.

Very interesting new line of thought here.  Something to ponder when I come before the throne of God asking for healing, deliverance, guidance, or provision.  If I am harboring any form of resentment, anger, or an unforgiving spirit in my heart when I pray, God may not hear me until I forgive others who may have hurt me in some way.*

Perhaps it is time for us to lay down those hurts and resentments and disappointments...and to actually, literally "forgive those who trespass against us." * Yes, this is definitely something to ponder. What about you?  Can I be the only one that needed this message today?

*Okay, now for the update:  I originally wrote this post on 2/15/15.  At that time I had a little sore on my leg that had started out as a little nick made perhaps with a razor, and it got infected, and then became a sore that would not heal. I had cleansed it thoroughly with peroxide, and/or alcohol,  put antibiotic salve on it, scrubbed it, tried other medications, and it just would not go away.  It wasn't terribly sore, but enough to make me notice it and begin to worry.  My husband wanted me to go to the doctor and get it checked, but since I don't have insurance (that's another "sore" subject), I would not go.  But as the weeks and then months went by and this sore remained and would become inflamed and then act like it was healing and then start all over again, I truly was becoming concerned.  You know, they tell you if you have sores that don't heal there could be something more seriously wrong, etc., so I was beginning to fear the worst. 

At the same time, there was a "friend" who was causing some hurt and distress in my life.  Nothing major, but then again, some frustrating and confusing signals.  Resentment and even some anger was beginning to creep in, affecting my attitude toward this individual. This wasn't the first time we'd had "issues", and I wasn't going to let this person get me down again.

Then one evening this person called me, crying and in deep distress, and begging for my forgiveness. At first I was reluctant as I wanted to let this person know just how much her actions had caused hurt and pain for me and others. But as I heard the genuine pain and anguish in her voice, I sensed the Lord telling me it was okay to let it go and to forgive. As I uttered the words of forgiveness verbally, something changed internally...and at that very same instant, the scab literally came off of the sore on my leg.  It opened up the wound and I could see that it was healing. After I concluded my conversation with a prayer for my friend and expressing true compassion that I know came only from God, I went and got a better look at the sore on my leg that was now truly healing...and I remembered these words from this message that I had written just a few months ago...

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."*

"And the LORD restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends..."

and here was tangible, living proof of the truth of those passages. Even though I believe the wound is healed, it appears there will remain a little scar to remind me of this lesson lest I forget it in the future.

To close this post, I would ask that you also pray for my friend. She is going through some deep water and needs emotional healing.  And pray for me, that I will keep an open heart and loving spirit. And may we all have eyes of compassion to see that sometimes we have to look beyond our personal hurt to see when someone may have deeper needs than our own...and be willing to forgive and help  a brother or a sister...and perhaps be personally healed in the process. Amen.