Good Morning Friends! Wonderfully wrapped in HIS loving arms Wednesday! No friends, I am not crazy, started this yesterday and then found my services were otherwise required!!!!! Hence……let’s add…..Thankfully loved by HIM, Thursday! I was talking to my son, Shawn, the other day, telling him how cute our bunnies are. “Oh yea,” he said, “there’s nothing cuter than baby bunnies and baby ducks. Do you remember when……?” I knew immediately which memory he was about to share……Many years ago when the kids were young and we lived in California we decided we needed some ducks! The boys, especially, loved animals and we always thought it was good for them to have the responsibility of caring for them. Once we decided on ducks, we headed to the feed store; after careful examination of every duck, we finally agreed on the perfect mommy and daddy ducks! We fixed them a little shelter and filled a little wading pool for their swimming pleasure! Oh so proud of our ducks and beyond excited when we had ducklings, the whole family couldn’t wait for them to be covered in yellow baby- feathers and join mommy and daddy in the pool! The boys were quite proud of their beautiful ducklings and mommy and daddy took good care of them…..Then one day, after school, Shawn and I went out to check on our family of ducks, fill the pool, check their feed…..we were happy as we walked out to the pasture, anticipating our family having fun in the pool. As we got close we could see that most of them were indeed swimming, it was a beautiful spring day…..blue skies boasting of God’s wondrous creation….Then…..out of nowhere……Shawn and I, at the say moment, caught site of a…..oh no…..surely not…..no, please don’t let that be…..no, no……please no….but in fact there was a chicken hawk circling over the family in the pool….closer and closer….Shawn and I ran screaming towards the pool, hoping our screams would scare the vulture away…..our earnest attempts failed…..we were both sick and heartbroken as we watched, totally helpless…….the skilled hawk dived towards the pool and in one quick swoop snatched a tiny, precious baby duck, covered in fluffy, yellow-baby feathers, swimming happily with his family totally unaware of lurking danger. Gone….in one fell swoop….Shawn and I were devastated as we stood silently watching the chicken hawk carry our duckling away….Ever since our conversation, the memory of that precious duckling’s fate has lingered in my mind……causing me to think how very vulnerable I am…..strutting through life as if I had everything under control……swimming in a pool of selfishness, misplaced priorities, edging on disaster at any time….unaware of the dangers because I am too preoccupied with today……me…..mine…..So vain, thinking no chicken hawk would dare swoop down and get me……HUH!!!! Praise God, our fate does not ever have to be the same as our little duckling’s. Our Heavenly Father is there watching over us, at all times…..ready to fell the hawks…..There was nothing the duckling could have done to stop his fate, but we….we have every opportunity to spend time with our Father, reading His word, growing in faith, finding comfort and strength through our prayers and conversations with HIM….He does not want us to be swooped up by this world. No siree!!!! He wants us as HIS very own, safe and sound, through life everlasting with HIM! Thank you Father for loving us so much, for wrapping Your loving arms around us!
Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am they God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. Isaiah 41:10. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7. Blessed are they that keep His testimonies and that seek Him with the whole heart. Psalms 119:2. Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord they God, He is it that doth go with thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Deuteronomy 31:6.
Love you all!
Kathie A. Johnson
Receptionist
Administrative Services
Division of Housing
