February 11, 2019
This week’s Fruit of the Vine includes a devotional reflection from Dorothy E. Barratt, who passed away in 2011. Dorothy helped build Silverton Friends Church, where she pastored with Charlotte Macy. Dorothy also served for years at George Fox Press, which is now part of Barclay Press. In this morning’s focus on Psalm 104, Dorothy writes about settling down at a table with her Bible and a copy of Fruit of the Vine: “Before starting my devotions, I looked out the window and got caught up in what I saw. The ocean was wild and noisy. I watched as the waves built up, burst, and rumbled over the shore every few seconds. They looked out of control.”
But Dorothy remembered what the psalmist writes of the waters:
“You set a boundary they cannot cross;
never again will they cover the earth” (Psalm 104:9).
Then Dorothy looked up, and “there on a ledge under the overhang of the roof, I saw a small bird’s nest. I looked more closely and saw a mother swallow fly to the nest and begin feeding the hungry babies. I could see their wide-open beaks over the edge of the nest, waiting while the mother flew in and out of the storm bringing them choice morsels.”
The same God who “set the earth on its foundations” (Psalm 104:5), remembers the baby birds.
God is both powerful and compassionate, Dorothy writes. “There are times in our weakness when we sense the need of a powerful God. We lean on God’s strength.... But there are also times when we need the understanding and comfort of a compassionate God, and God is there.”
I’m praying that you might know God’s power and experience God’s compassion today.
Eric Muhr
|
