Fire in the sky...

Church in the woods...

Luke 5:16 (NLT) "But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer."

     So... sitting in the woods during bow season is something I look forward to doing each year.  Waiting with anticipation for a buck to come strolling by...  getting that needed "alone" time that my heart yearns for...

     Unfortunately this year was a dud...  with no appearance of any deer whatsoever, it left me with nothing but time to think...  thinking can be quite consuming and even overwhelming...  especially when it involves the past, the present, and the future...  it all seems so huge and the mind can definitely get side tracked with things that are out of our control...  1 Peter 5:7 (NLT)  "Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you."
    God reminded me of the fact that things are out of our hands and we can find comfort by giving everything that troubles us to Him...  He is in control...  We have to throw all our worries over to Him and trust God to work things out for the best.
     After that reminder...  All my senses began to awaken and I began to enjoy the things in the woods throughout my week in the woods...  Not deer... but God's blessings everywhere around me...

The booming sound of an owl hooting in the distance before daybreak...
The slight breeze that comes when the sun just peeks over the horizon...
The smell of the damp leaves on the ground below...
The amazing way a squirrel can come down a tree upside down as fast as it can climb up...
Watching the trees release their leaves as the sun hits the tree tops...
The "wave" of birds scrounging through the woods looking for a meal in trees...
A curious chickadee landing on my bow...
The rippling sound of the creek below my stand...
The crashing of turkey wings against branches as they are leaving their roost at daybreak...
A bird drinking rain water from the crotch of a tree...
Watching and hearing a squirrel sneeze...
A leaf landing on my leg...
The lonely sound of an airplane flying away...
The mist rising from the ground as the sun warms the ground...
The business of a chipmonk searching for food...
A blue jay squawking as it canvasses the woods...
The "blizzard" of leaves falling from the tree tops as the wind picks up...
A leaf floating downstream on it's journey in the creek below...  disappearing out of sight...
The warming comfort of a good shiver...
The piercing squelch of a hawk calling from a tree behind me...
The crisp morning air making my nose run...
The long shadows of the trees as the sun makes it's appearance...
The thunderous pecking of a woodpecker looking for a meal...
The distant honking of geese looking for a place to land as darkness falls...
The warmth that follows after wiggling of my toes in my boots...
The comforting feeling of the sun hitting my face...
The vibrant red of a red headed woodpecker...
The elm trees stingily "holding" their leaves...
A pair of cardinals being the last birds you see at night in the woods...
The battle between crows and smaller birds as they fly through the tree tops...
The weightless floating motion of a leaf heading to the forest floor...
The slow sway of the tree I'm in as a strong wind pushes through the woods...
The rise of my heartbeat as turkeys march through the leaves...
The entertainment of an inchworm climbing the branch next to me... 
The beauty of a dew covered spider web...
The fun of piecing together the puzzle of which branch on the ground fell from which tree...
The realization of the fact that no one else on earth will see the leaf I see from my stand...
The whistling sound of the wings of geese as they fly overhead at tree top level...
The rough feel of bark on the palm of my hands...
The deafening sound of silence at nightfall...
The fiery orange glow of the sunrise in the eastern sky...
The sound of shredding bark as a squirrel chases an intruder off his tree...
The realization of how cold the end of my nose really is when I itch it...
The sound of excitement of the 1st chirps of the birds in the morning...
The "green socks" of moss on the bottoms of white oak trees...

 
     There are small blessings and gifts from God all around us...  I find peace in the small things...

Worrying will not take away tomorrow's troubles...  It will take away today's peace...

me... in a tree...