Corona Devo 1457

I'm not sure if you have squirrels where you live, but we do.  In the Spring, Summer, and Fall, they jump from tree to tree, skitter along the ground, and tight-rope walk across electric lines, but in the Winter, the squirrels are mostly absent...hidden away in scruffy, messy-looking leafy nests that (somehow!) stay perched high in our backyard treetops.  

Maybe you've seen a squirrel nest or you have some in your own backyard trees.  

I can't figure those squirrel nests out.  

The weather where we live in Winter is cold.  Squirrels are small, thin animals with not a lot of meat on their bones and no blubber.  How do they stay warm in those nests?  

And the nests!  They look fragile (to me), as if they could blow right out of the empty tree tops, but they never do.  I've watched our trees sway in the wind and bend in the bluster of snow, and yet, I've never watched a nest fall.  They are pressed on every side by trouble some days, but they are not crushed.

...I have no idea how these squirrels adhere a bunch of loose leaves and sticks to the top of a tiny tree branch and it (somehow) becomes a safe, stable, protective place during a long season of freezing, wet, windy days and nights.  

Those nests have a fortitude that is not visible, but their longevity and position prove that they are built to weather the storm.

The same is true of us, Brothers and Sisters in Christ.  We look the same as everyone else.  There is nothing special or remarkable about us at all.  Much the contrary, actually.  But we know Jesus and we preach Jesus, and until He calls us home to Heaven, we will keep serving Him.  

Most of us do this much to the wonder (and possible scrutiny) of others.  We do not have a fortitude that is visible.  Most of us are quite fragile, to be honest.  But our longevity (Keep working for the Lord one day at a time!) and position (God's Word and ways) will ensure that we weather the storms of life.

Our trees may sway.  Our circumstances may bend us.  Often, we may have no idea how we will make it through the poundings of today.  But we serve a Heavenly Father that has secured us, and His love for us is safe, stable and protective during every season of our lives. 

~~~

You see, we don’t go around preaching about ourselves. We preach that Jesus Christ is Lord, and we ourselves are your servants for Jesus’ sake. (6) For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ.  

(7) We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.  

(8) We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair. 

(9) We are hunted down, but never abandoned by God. 

We get knocked down, but we are not destroyed. 

(10) Through suffering, our bodies continue to share in the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus may also be seen in our bodies.  

(11) Yes, we live under constant danger of death because we serve Jesus, so that the life of Jesus will be evident in our dying bodies. (12) So we live in the face of death, but this has resulted in eternal life for you.  

(13) But we continue to preach because we have the same kind of faith the psalmist had when he said, “I believed in God, so I spoke.”  

(14) We know that God, who raised the Lord Jesus, will also raise us with Jesus and present us to himself together with you. (15) All of this is for your benefit. And as God’s grace reaches more and more people, there will be great thanksgiving, and God will receive more and more glory.  

(16) That is why we never give up. Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are being renewed every day.

(17) For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! 

(18) So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.  ~2 Corinthians 4:5-18

~~~

Our trees may sway today.  

Our circumstances may bend us today.  

We may have no idea how we will make it through the poundings of today.  

But we continue to preach ... For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! (2 Corinthians 4:13, 17).

Blessings,

sarah

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com