“Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without the words, and never stops at all.” Emily Dickinson
I love the way Emily Dickinson uses nature to define hope. I see hope in two young eagles perched high in a tree looking out on their world. I see hope in a mother Mallard swimming to the lake shore with four babies swimming behind her trying to keep up. I see hope in a baby fawn following her mother on shaky legs, and in a little red fox that lives in a big pipe by my house. I see hope in the lifting fog over the mountains in the early morning, as I listen to the birds sing. I see new life in the woods all around me and it gives me hope.
Jesus said, The Kingdom of God is like...and he pointed to seeds, weeds and wheat, a mustard seed, fine pearls found in oyster shells, and fish in Matthew 13. Jesus told us not to be anxious about our lives. He told us to look at the birds and the lilies, and Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness…in Matthew 6.
So when I get discouraged I look to nature. It is a reminder of God’s goodness, beauty, new beginnings, new life, and hope. May we “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Romans 12: 12
Pastor Terry