Finding Treasures

     I was out in the woods again this morning, crawling over the rocks in an area that I don’t visit often. I was following a game trail through an area littered by huge car size boulders. As I stepped over a boulder I was surprised to see a beautiful geode stone. The sharp hooves of deer and other game had chipped away at the soft slate like rock exposing the geode. The geode was already cracked open, evidently by animal’s hooves. With a little searching around I was able to find the other parts of the geode.

     I have never been much of a rock hound, but my curiosity was aroused. I went back to the house and got a masonry hammer and returned to the area and started chipping away at the bolder. With a few minutes of digging I uncovered several additional whole geode stones. Not knowing how fragile the geodes were, I hit one with my hammer to break it open. It exploded into a thousand pieces. I took a second geode and hit it with a much lighter blow, only to see it also explode in many small pieces. Being attuned to the rock treasures I was able to locate several additional interesting rock formations in the area. I have since checked out several gem and mineral sites on the web. I even considered joining the Austin Gem & Mineral Society, but decided I already have enough hobbies to keep me busy.

     Finding my rock treasures in the woods reminded me of a treasure story in the Bible. In Matthew 13:44, Jesus tells a parable about a man who found a valuable treasure that was hidden in a field. The man hid the treasure again, so no one else would find it. He then went and sold everything he had to raise enough money to buy the field. He was then able to go and claim his treasure! Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like this hidden treasure.
     The kingdom of heaven or kingdom of God is a state that we exist in when we are living for Christ. When people see and understand the value of living for Christ they are willing to do anything to attain that state, just as the man was willing to sell all that he had to take possession of the treasure in the field.
     We Christians in America have suffered very little as a result of our living for Christ. This is not the case in other countries. In my recent travel to China I was told by my Chinese friend that people in China could be arrested for talking about God or religion. I was surprised to find a Bible in the nightstand drawer of a hotel in Shanghai, China. It was evidently left by a previous guest. I took the Bible out of the drawer and left it on top of the nightstand. When I returned to the room that evening, the Bible was gone. I supposed that it was put back in the drawer, but could not locate it. I guess the housecleaning people took the Bible.
     We are blessed with religious freedom in America. Please pray for those in the world who today risk their very lives to live for Christ!

Caring for the Sick

     Having been sick for a week after Christmas, I missed my daily hikes in the woods. Sitting around the house I had a lot of time for thinking and meditation. I started thinking about the animals in the woods: What do they do when they are sick? Who takes care of them when they are sick or injured? Who insures that they have adequate food? I recently saw a coyote walking down the trail on three legs, after apparently injuring his foot. I wonder if he recovered sufficiently to hunt again. I saw a buck dear with most of his vision blocked by some sort of rope and cloth caught in his horns. I wonder if he was able to free himself before being caught by some predator. While working in my back yard I recently head a fawn bleating. I walked to the edge of my deck, overlooking the woods, and watched for a few minutes. A young deer came tearing across an opening with a coyote in hot pursuit, not more than 20 yards behind him. I could hear them crashing through the brush for several minutes. I wonder if the fawn survived the attack.



     There are many animal rescue organizations that help rehabilitate injured animals that are captured, but what about the rest of injured animals in the woods? I decided to check the Bible to see what God has to say about caring for animals and nature.
     I was surprised at the number of scriptures that talk about nature. Evidently God really cares for the things of nature. Matthew talks about two sparrows being sold for a farthing, or ¼ a penny, but mentions that not one of them shall fall to the ground without God’s knowledge or consent. (Matt 10:29). Matthew also challenges us to: “behold the fowls of the air, who don’t sow, reap, or gather into barns; yet our heavenly Father feeds them (Matt 6:26).

Matthew also tells us to consider the lilies of the field, how: “they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you that even Solomon is all his glory was not arrayed like one of these”.

       It was reassuring to see multiple scriptures telling us of our heavenly Father’s knowledge and concern for nature. What was really exciting, was to see the comparisons in several of the scriptures, about how much more God is knowledgeable and caring of us. Matthew 6:30 says: “if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you”. Luke talks about God being aware of every sparrow falling to the ground and then tells us: “but even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows”.
     So the next time you are sick or lonely, just remember, God is watching over you and is just as near as a whispered prayer!

Ice Flowers

    There are some very unique creations in nature that are only seen by a few fortunate people. I was recently privileged to see one of these creations. I took a walk in the woods during our first freeze of this winter. I saw what looked like Kleenex tissues spread across the ground. Upon close observation I realized that it was not tissues but “ice flowers” or as some call them “frost flowers”. I quickly returned to my house to get my camera to capture the unique moment.

These unique creations can only be observed once a year at the first freeze, and they disappear as soon at the temperature rises above freezing. Some years they do not appear at all. These flowers are very delicate and a breath of hot air is all it takes to make them to disappear.












     “Ice flowers” are created by a rare and difficult to observe phenomena. At the first freeze, sap still exists in the stems of certain plants, such as the common “rag week” in central Texas. As the sap starts to freeze it expands and creates long cracks along the plant’s stem. The sap is then extruded out of these cracks, and immediately freezes on contact with the cold air. As the sap continues to extrude out the crack, it forms ribbons or petals that are similar to flowers.

    Observing the fragile “ice flowers”, that only last for a couple of hours, reminds me of the writings of James, who compares our life to a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away (James 4:14). Time can seem to pass by slowly, especially when we are sick are going through rough times. We sometimes feel that we have lived for an extremely long time on earth, but compared to an eternity in heaven, our time spent on earth will be very short. Live your life on earth for God and you will enjoy a long eternity in heaven!