I love watching birds – all kinds of birds. Most of the time I’m looking for color and the right lighting to capture all of the beauty God has made in these interesting characters. These are pictures of some birds fighting over food and then a little sharing by the sparrows.

The picture of the goldfinches made me laugh because I just assumed since they are cute that they were always passive and sweet.  Apparently they can be territorial as well.

As I was watching the Red-Bellied Woodpecker and European Starling they started pecking each other. It became apparent, however, that the woodpecker owns the suet feeder and the starling waited until he was done before helping himself to the feeder.

I’m amazed every day at the complexity and beauty of all that God has created and find myself constantly in a state of awe.

My daughter and I collected seashells every time we went to the ocean but they simply sat in a bucket for a long, long time. We recently moved to a different house and my living room has an African theme.  I decided that I wanted to “do something” with the seashells so I made a 3 foot seashell giraffe.  Here’s how I did it:

1.  Cut out a paper template the size and shape I wanted

2. Took a large roll of chicken wire and cut it out in the shape of my template

3. Then I layered the templates to get them ready for assembly.

• On the bottom I put my paper template (so I could visually see the shape better).
• On top of the paper template, I put the wax paper – this was so I could use as much glue as needed without worrying about it leaking through to my carpet.
• I put the chicken wire on top of the wax paper and then I was ready to get started.

4.  I started by gluing shells around the outside edge of my image. I then just continued filling it in until all of the chicken wire was covered.  I used smaller shells and/or broken shell pieces to fill in the small gaps to ensure the wire was completely covered.

5. Once completed and I let it dry for 24 hours, I cut single pieces of wire and looped through the back of the chicken wire to make hangers for hanging. Because the weight was quite heavy, I had to put a hanger on the back AND on the neck.  Also, once I had it hung, I put a few screws in between some of the shells to mount it tightly to the wall.

A few tips:

• If I were to do something this large again, I would probably stabilize it on wood or something a little heavier. Although the chicken wire worked well for gluing everything together, it wasn’t as sturdy as I had hoped once I had the weight of the shells on it.
• I tried several different kinds of glue and the one that worked the absolute best was Loctite All-Purpose Adhesive. It is pretty smelly but it tries clear and held great!
• After everything has dried for at least 24 hours, I turned it over and put additional glue on the back side in the cracks to provide additional support and let that dry again for another 24 hours.

Psalm 46:10 (NIV) – He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”

* “He says…” Although I’ve always known these words came directly from God, when I stop to think that He tells us to “be still…” it makes the scripture that much more powerful to me. It is my holy Father telling me that I need to stop and calm myself because He has something important to tell me.

* Then the next words – the words I often fail to hear – are “be still….” As simple as those words are, they are sometimes the hardest for me to do. In the middle of a busy day, a stressful moment, a time of frustration or a time of anger, I forget these words all too often. Yet they are there for a reason – to help me.

But what does “be still” mean? It means I stop, close my mouth, relinquish the thoughts going through my head and prepare my heart to listen for what God is about to tell me. Experience has proven to me that if I do stop and I do make myself still and listen to His next words, how the moment can change and how quickly my peace of mind can be restored.

* In this verse, the next words are the most significant to me. He says “…and KNOW that I am God.” I have to put the emphasis on the word “know.” One of the dictionary definitions of the word ‘know’ is “to apprehend clearly and with certainty.” With certainty I need to remember that He is God, He is in control and no matter what is going on around, this certainty always brings me serenity, comfort and reassurance – when I actually stop and make myself still.

* The last part of the verse – “I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exhalted in the earth.” is often overlooked. For me, I have overlooked it because once I stop and become still and remember that He is in control, my peace is restored and I don’t typically think about the next two sentences. However, in studying them now, I feel their significance as well. If I stop and become still, I will also remember that my life on this earth is not about me. With these words, not only should my peace be restored but I should be humbled. In my own moments – in the here and now – I not only have to remember that God is in control of all things but He is the eternal God. His presence remains far beyond this moment and he will continue to be exalted forever.

Philippians 4:13 – I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

* The verse starting with “I” is empowering ME with capabilities that I would not ordinarily have on my own.

* I had to stop for a moment this afternoon when I was feeling overwhelmed at work and remind myself that everything I “need” to accomplish, I can do through Christ. So I need to stop more frequently throughout the day to ensure my efforts are being done through Him – and ask myself – am I do everything as He would have me to do?

* Do I believe I can do ALL things through him? If my answer to this is not “yes” then I am putting limitations on God’s power. When I start having this doubt, I need to stop and make a list of the extensive list of things I could not have accomplished without God’s help to remind me that His power is without limits.

* HE strengthens me! When I am feeling worn, stressed or overwhelmed – am I stopping to ask for strength? Am I trusting and believing that He can strengthen me?

* I need to always be emotionally connected to Christ so that I can continue to be strengthened by Him. If I neglect my relationship with Him, I may forget that He is my source of strength. If I keep in constant contact with Him throughout the day, I will be in a much better position to maintain the strength I need throughout each day.

I am so very grateful that I don’t have to obtain strength on my own. I am blessed to have a God that always gives me exactly the strength I need!

I just started a new activity of “Verse Mapping.” The radio station I listen to is having a “Forgiveness Week” so the scripture I memorized today:

Matthew 6:15 (NIV) But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Here are the thoughts I had as I studied this verse today:
* The ‘you’ means “I” have a responsibility when it comes to forgiveness.
* My responsibility is not only about forgiving others but doing so to ensure MY sins are forgiven.
* ‘Others’ does not give us limited criteria of family or friends – it is all inclusive – EVERYONE.
* This gives us a clearly stated consequence – forgive or don’t be forgiven.

This reflection then led me to thinking about Matthew 6:12 which says:
And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.

This one hits me to the core – do I REALLY want to be forgiven as I have forgiven those who have sinned against me? If not, then I probably need to take a closer look at how I am forgiving others.