Daily Devotional for December 26, 2012

1 Chronicles 16:11
Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

This afternoon, I spent quite a while standing in front of one of our big windows with my camera and tripod in front of me. I photographed birds that came to dine at our feeder this snowy day. I was mesmerized by the little feathered creatures… especially the purple finches. I wanted to get the perfect picture of one of them. So I stood there… continually seeking an opportunity for just the right photo op!

I got quite a few nice pictures… but I’m not sure any of them are “perfect.” So I will have to try again another time. Still, I learned some things while standing in the window. I discovered that the female finches are feisty… they will peck at the males and make them move, so that they can get to the seeds! I noticed that these birds are persistent. If they get knocked off their perch, they fly right back and try again. I also observed that when a bigger bird approaches the feeder, the others take a step back - maybe not so much out of respect for the bird as for his/her size - but they do move!

What does this have to do with the strength of the LORD? Well, for starters, the God who cares about these tiny feathered foul is the same God who cares incredibly about every detail of our lives. The God who makes sure that these tiny creatures are scrappy and strong enough to survive will give us all of the strength we need to face every minute of our day. The Heavenly Father who took time to give the purple finches a beautiful ruddy red breast, the cardinals their brilliant hue, and the big fat dove the detailed black and brown speckled covering will surely care about every aspect of our being.

Additionally, I realized that persistence pays. I had quite a few pictures to cull… those that were out of focus or not well-composed. And in life, we will have some things that don’t work out so well. But if we continually seek God… if we persist in our desire to follow His will and hear His voice… He will answer. God will equip us with strength and courage for our journey… from the best day to our worst.

Are you searching for the LORD in your daily living? Are you continually seeking God and expecting Him to show up in your life? Where do you gather strength? Are you sure you are looking in the right places? Isn’t it time you did?

©2012 Debbie Robus