The Bear in the Woods
Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. Psalm 138:7
Every time we go for a ride, we look for bears. They live in these woods and roam Tioga County. We have seen two, but I am always eager to see more—especially in the wild. They are quite ominous and soon they will be stuffing themselves for hibernation. We will probably see a few more in the next month. Lori Stanley Roeleveld (All God’s Creatures) has written a wonderful devotion that will make you stop and think.
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There was a bear in my daughter’s woods.
There it was, a young male black bear, captured on wildlife and doorbell cameras at locations within a two-mile radius of my daughter’s homestead. We live nearby, but her home borders protected lands, and she’s often outside at night caring for her animals. I’d prayed about many things, but now here was a bear in her woods.
Bears are fascinating, and I’ve often hoped to catch a glimpse of one at a safe distance. I knew, theoretically, there were bears who passed through our town. But now we’d installed a doorbell with cameras, and the app on my phone received notifications from neighbors with similar cameras. Many photos or short videos of this lumbering, hungry black bear popped up in my notifications over a couple of weeks and my anxiety began to rise.
Whenever a photo of the bear appeared—the bear who seemed mostly interested in bird feeders and trash cans—I would pray. One day while praying, I sensed God urging me to read the comments under the photo. The first one stopped me in my tracks. “Is this the bear we’ve seen for last three years or a younger one?” Of course, there have always been bears in the woods. The only change was that I had seen this one.
Right there, I thanked God for this wild, wandering bear. His amblings inspired me to pray and while I prayed, God reminded me that my anxiety does not protect my family. He does. He knows everything that is in the woods—or on the roads and in the cities or wherever we roam. There are bears, mountain lions, and even sometimes human predators, but there are also angels and chariots of fire. The eyes of God are better than a million neighborhood cameras. We—and the bear—are in His hands.
And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, LORD, so that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 2 Kings 6:17 (NIV)
Father, thank You for being who You are. You securely hold us in the palm of Your hands, and we are grateful people. Help us to see our world through Your eyes. AMEN.
Photo: Michael Johnston