Birds And Booze

Today is the answer to my mystery bush. Who would have thought it would have a direct connection with hard liquor? But I'll get to that in a minute. Beverly and George in Tennessee guessed what it is. A Juniper! Juniper berries have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs, including king Tut's. The Greeks used them in many of their Olympic events. They are used as seasonings in foods, and McCormick sells bottles of them in a dried form. Juniper is what is used to flavor gin. That's right! The name "gin" itself is derived from the French "genievre" or the Dutch "jenever", which both mean "juniper". Juniper berries are not tasty, and wildlife leave them alone till the winter, when they fall on hard times. Junipers help pull the wildlife through really tough times. They provide shelter, food, protection, and are one of the top ten plants for wildlife. All kinds of birds, including grouse, turkeys, and bluebirds devour the fruit. During one cold day, a single bird may gulp down 200 berries. And I've never heard of even one getting drunk!!

"Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or stow away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they." Matthew 6:26

Blue Berries In Winter

We saw this shrub the other day

With berries that were pretty blue

Out came the Nikon from my purse

What was this bush? I wish I knew

Against the wall of "The Olive Garden"

It grew unkempt and wild

And as we went inside to dine

It really made me smile

I asked a waitress passing by

What the shrub could be

She said she'd never noticed it

But now she's curious to see

The meal we ate was wonderful

Our trip had been so merry

And as we ate I had to wonder

Would the birds eat those blue berries?

I said to Phil "Our friends will know

As soon as we get home"

A girlfriend knew; it's in her yard

So then I wrote this poem

So can you guess what this shrub is

With berries brightly blue?

Come back tomorrow, when I'll say

Or else you'll wish you knew.

Haiti

Today when I looked at our local paper,this is what I saw. This is a picture of our friend, Joe Arbaugh, and his brother James,in Haiti. Joe is our minister of missions to Haiti,and his brother James lives in Haiti,working at Hospital Albert Schweitzer. Joe left for Haiti almost immediatly upon hearing of the earthquake, to join his brother in helping.Both of these men have a deep love for the Haitian people and many friends there. His e-mails from Haiti are filled with unimaginable horror. I don't have the words for this post, so I will write parts of a prayer for Haiti by Diana MaCalintal:


Lord, at times such as this
When we realize that the ground beneath our feet
Is not as solid as we had imagined
We plead for your mercy.

As the things we have built crumble about us
We know too well how small we truly are
On this ever-changing, ever-moving
Fragile planet we call home
Yet you have promised never to forget us.

Comfort them, Lord, in this disaster
Be their rock when the earth refuses to stand still
And shelter them under your wings when homes no longer exist.

For though the mountains leave their place
And the hills be tossed to the ground
Your love shall never leave us
And your promise of peace will never be shaken.

Our help is in the name of the Lord
Who made heaven and earth
Blessed be the name of the Lord
Now and forever. amen.

A Black And White World

Our Shennandoah Valley is nestled within a circle of mountains, and yesterday a mist had settled down in the valley. Driving around to do errands in the middle of the day, I took these pictures, which have not had the color modified.

When the mists have rolled in splendor
From the beauty of the hills
And the sunshine, warm and tender
Falls in kisses on the rills
We recall our Father's promise
In the rainbow of the spray
We shall know each other better
When the mists have cleared away

If we err in human blindness
And forget that we are dust
If we miss the law of kindness
When we struggle to be just
Snowy wings of peace shall cover
All the pain of endless days
When the weary watch is over
And the mists have cleared away.

Annie H. Barker & Ira D. Sankey
slightly modified by me

Have You Seen The Saucer?

If you did not read my first post about our new flying saucer, and the funny story which happened the first time we tried to fly it, check out "Our New Toy" from December 20. This little saucer is amazing; it is not remote controlled! So we've been having a blast showing it off to friends and family over the last few weeks. But while they are watching the saucer, I am enjoying watching them when they see it. Everyone is amazed. But along with that, they all seem to have slightly different reactions. Some are skeptical, some laugh out loud, some can't wait to touch it and try it out,some are puzzled, some are kind of scared. So it's been interesting to see how our different friends personalities react. In a much earlier post, I wrote that I don't think real flying saucers should be of any concern to us. This is because if it was important, Jesus would have said something. And also, we have enough concern with being our own little light here on earth, so we don't need to go looking for mysterious ones not of this realm. Satan is, in fact The prince of the power of the air. Watching the reactions to the saucer got me to thinking of people's reactions when Jesus returns. There will be plenty of amazement then, but we as Christians will certainly not be puzzled or skeptical.


"So if anyone tells you 'There he is, out in the desert',do not go out; or,'Here He is, in the inner rooms', do not believe it. For as lightening that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son Of Man." Matthew 24:26 The only thing that we need to be looking up for that matters is Jesus.

Living Your Life Backwards

"Bidding The Buglar Goodbye" was the headlines in today's local paper, along with these pictures. The Buglar was Tom Larner, a much beloved local policeman who also played trumpet at his church. He died at age 36 after a two year battle with cancer. For his funeral, many local streets were closed and policemen came from far and wide. Fifty policemen had met for over a week, even before Tom died, to plan the procession routes and protocol of the funeral. It was big. It made the headlines. His casket was pulled by horses, there was a bagpiper in traditional Scottish dress, alone on a hill. And after the 21 gun salute, a lone buglar played "Taps" for his fallen buglar friend. Plaintive. Most of my posts are uplifting, but a promise I made when I started this blog was to write about how I see God in my everyday life. And this was what touched me the most today and inspired this post. It got me to thinking about a devotional I read a long time ago that I've never forgotten and always take to heart. It's about living your life backwards. Live your life as If you were watching your funeral. What will people say about you and remember you for? I have heard this said about many people at their funerals. "I never heard him say a bad word about anyone." What a fine thing to aspire to! Something much better than many of the unattainable New Year's Resolutions I have heard. Psalm 116:15 says this: "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints." My commentary says this means that God is close to us even in death, and He carefully choses the time when we will be called in to His presence. So perhaps this post is not so bleak after all.

Where Can They Hide?

If to Heaven's heights I fly

You are still beside me,

Or in death's dark shadows lie,

You will stay close by me.

If I flee on morning wings

Far across the gray sea,

Even there your hand will lead,

Your right hand will guide me.

These are the two 3 year old girls in our lives. Our granddaughter, Anne Marie, and Ella, who we babysit. They are at the age where they just love to hide. They are far too young to realize that there's really no place in the house that we can't find them. But they still get quite a kick out of thinking they surprised us. The word "seek" translates in the Hebrew to "baquash", a word that means to search out, strive after, desire, request, require. It describes a passionate search for something of great value. Ever since Adam and Eve, people have been trying to hide from God. But as these little girls are of great value to us, so we are to God. He is our fortress, an ever present help to run to in times of trouble. Blankets are only for babies.

"Where can I go from your spirit?

Where can I flee from your presence?

If I go up to the heavens, you are there;

If I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

If I rise on the wings of the dawn,

If I settle on the far side of the sea,

Even there your hand will guide me,

Your right hand will hold me fast.

Psalm 139:7