Eagles are strong, regal and able to fly higher than imaginable. God wants us to hope in Him. The more we trust Him and the more He fulfills our trust in Him, the higher we will be able to soar with Him. Isaiah 40:31 "But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

A duck's webbed foot suits a watery habitat. Our habitat is God's Kingdom. We are to stand in God's Kingdom where we can wear His full armour, part of which consists of our feet "fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace' (Ephesians 6:15). The word armour seems in contradiction to the word peace but in fact God's armour is our defence on earth and gives us the already established victory over all that attempts to eradicate our peace. The destruction of our peace comes in the form of our situations or what is consuming our thoughts. We can stand firm.

In today's picture, we are encouraged to rise above our stressful and seemingly negative circumstances. How do we do this? Jesus wants us to trust Him at all times and thus not worry or fear. He has given us his Holy Spirit to live in us and help us. He knows we have doubts but let us journey with Him to build up our trust rather than wait until we have full proof. (John 14; John 20:26-28).

A human heart of love, usually depicted with the colour red, is wonderful news but usually, and understandably, there is an expectation or at least a desire for reciprocation. On a supreme level, God has unconditional love for us. God literally has no conditions to us receiving His love. It requires faith to really believe this seemingly impossible and incredible love. It is not for us to earn. It is a gift! (Ephesians 2:4-5,8-9).

Those old Perry Como lyrics of "catch a falling star and put it in your pocket" could be used to remind us not to disregard our past blessings. Let's find a way to store wonderful memories of God's miraculous love, provision and mercy towards us in the past. Then we will have resources to draw on when life inevitably throws us curve balls. Records and memories of our past experiences will help us trust that God is always there to help us and we won't be so easily drawn away from Him. (Matthew 24).

When Jesus rode into Jerusalem, shortly before He was crucified (which He knew in advance), with many people lining the streets to welcome Him, He came in humbly on a donkey rather than with pomp and ceremony on an imposing steed. The donkey he was riding was actually a colt, an unbroken donkey, so we know Jesus had not used reins and stirrups (Mark 11:1-3). This is a significant detail, indicating that not only is Jesus humble but that He is also gentle and not out to control us. He loves us and willingly went to the Cross for all mankind but we have total free will to follow Him or not.

Today I was reminded of a story whereby a wonderfully sensitive teacher had to handle a case of theft of a watch in his classroom. He asked all the students to stand in a circle and close their eyes, whilst he checked their pockets. He thus found the stolen item and returned it to its rightful owner, whilst never reprimanding or revealing the thief. Years later the culprit told the teacher that that kindness inspired him not only to be a sensitive teacher but also to never steal again. The old teacher then told him that he had also closed his eyes whilst checking the pockets! That story makes me think of our awesome God Who encourages us to change for good, but he does not reprimand or ostracise us but rather, forgives and forgets! Hebrews 10:17 "I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more".

Our lives start off like a ball of wool/yarn with a destiny set to be created through us. We have free will to follow God's beautiful creative life for us or other ways. If we follow a tangled route, by God's grace He can untangle us and redirect us along the purposeful life He has always wanted for us. Proverbs 16:9 tells us that "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps".

Our Christian life can be fun and adventurous but entail the navigation of some rocky incidences. That bubbling pebbly stream could represent our life heading towards wonderful eternity. Jesus is with us and strengthening us in whatever we have to contend with. "Fight the good fight for the faith, take hold of eternal life ..." (1 Timothy 6:12)

In looking ahead to a flourishing vegetable patch or flower bed, we know we need to take care of the daily weeds. Similarly, in our focus on being nurtured and nurturing others in the Kingdom of God, let us try to eradicate the daily niggling worries in our lives and the distractions which stop us from focussing on God's Kingdom (Matthew 13:22).