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In May, I had some correspondence with one of the contributors to these PresbyCan Daily Devotionals, in which we commented on the fact that our small pets or animals can fall prey to a predator at any time. This made me think of the time when I raised homing pigeons. I had a nice flock of good birds, and I spent many enjoyable hours looking at and after them. However, there was one constant threat: the presence of hawks. They can quite easily catch a pigeon in flight, by surprise.
One afternoon, I was sitting on the back deck behind the house watching as my pigeons were flying overhead, back and forth, sometimes landing on the loft and then taking off again. Suddenly, out of a clear blue sky, high above the pigeons, a hawk streaked down and grabbed one of my nicest and best birds. The hawk tried to fly off with him, but the bird was too heavy, and the two of them crashed down to the ground, not far from the house. I ran over, hollered, yelled, and waved my arms, and finally, the hawk let go of the badly injured pigeon and took off. I took the bird to the loft, treated it as best I could, and it survived.
A disaster of some kind can come upon anyone at any time, quite often out of a clear blue sky. We have all experienced a matter of concern at some point in our lives, I'm sure, and sometimes suddenly. It might be a personal illness, the death of a loved one, or the loss of employment. The sudden arrival and persistent continuation of the coronavirus, and how it has affected our lives, is a case in point. We did not see it coming, and in most cases, it has greatly upset our personal lives and the life of our churches.
Even when these things happen to us, we can cope when we "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NKJV)
Prayer: Our Father in heaven, we pray for all those people who are suddenly confronted with situations which are devastating for their personal lives. We pray that You will be with them in their time of need. We ask it in Jesus' name. Amen.
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Thursday, January 23, 2025 – In Europe — Pray for the Jewish community to be encouraged and feel the love of their non-Jewish Christian friends. Pray that the Holy Spirit would open the hearts and minds of these secular Jews, and for God's leadership in my work.
daughter: "Update December 30, 2024: And please touch her heart that she may turn to YOU.* November 12, 2024:..." 
Amen!
Thanks for the encouragement, Joel.
Very good devotion. Thank you. God bless you.
Great post, Joel. So true, thanks and God bless!
Well-told, Joel! Memorable! Thanks for the inspiration today.
Good word today Joel.
God bless.
Thanks for your message today. I lost my brother to Covid after a 3-week struggle with the disease. Your devotion spoke to my heart. Blessings.
Good morning, Joel,
Thank you always for your meditations. I am in a very difficult situation, and I thank you for your prayers.
Thank you so much Joel each and every one of the messages you send us are most meaningful, encouraging, helpful and appreciated!
(N.S.)
As always, Joel, I connect and am encouraged and strengthened by your reflections. Thank you so much and bless you for continuing to carry on this ministry of yours. God bless.
Thank you, Joel, for sharing this encouraging devotional with us. Loved to see the birds that came to my feeders, but now we must stop feeding them to keep a bird virus from spreading. Soon I’ll sanitize my feeders and rehang them, but not just yet.
Thanks Joel, out of my “clear blue sky” cancer has come to our son. Praying God will use this to bring His fruits in the life of our family, (not followers of The Way.)
Bless you for this meditation,
(BC)
Good morning Joel
Thank you and so grateful we do not go through these things alone. We too had pigeons for awhile, the hawk was successful twice.
God bless.
Hello Joel:
I wish to thank you for all the meaningful Devotions you submit on a regular basis. They are greatly appreciated, and the Lord has blessed you with an incredible gift of writing and praising our Lord through your Devotions.
Blessings.
Greetings Joel,
Many thanks for another special devotional. Yes, our life situation can change at any moment and that seems the case these days. There is an endless number and variety of things happening every day and I sometimes feel our Lord must be in overload of situations to handle. Our faith and trust must remain strong for He will handle all in the best way. Good to hear you were able to rescue your pigeon from a dire situation. Blessings for these interesting writings you do.
I was particularly able to relate to your reading today because having experienced two out of the blue tragedies in my lifetime, I can testify God is faithful to hold your mind in moments of intense shock, and my family and I were the beneficiaries of the prayers and support of God’s praying people.
We do need to pray for people going through unexpected trauma. After my brother was murdered while on vacation in the US, as Canadians we never expected that would ever happen to anyone in our family. Ever since, we have made it a habit to pray for families of victims of unexpected crimes and disasters. Thank you for the reminder to continue doing this.
Joel, you hit on what happened to me Wednesday. I knew what I knew was right and handed over my car keys. I had talked this decision over with Lord for a very long time so was prepared when it happened. I can’t honestly say I haven’t had a few strange feelings, but the Lord has totally been with me and led me through, knowing it is right. So thank you for your good words at the right time for me. God bless you greatly
(Ca.)