The past few blog posts have been pondering God’s protection and care … not only for His creatures, but also for those who love and follow Him.
God has provided camouflage protection for the little slugs. But their camouflage protection won’t do them any good if they choose to hang out in harmful places … such as the middle of the road.
So also, God provides protection and care for those who love and follow Him. But God’s protection won’t be there for us if we choose to “hang out” in places where God does not want us to be.
We also saw that God has provided protection and care for little birds and their babies, in the hidden safety of their nest. But God’s protection is according to season.
When the warm summer season comes to an end, God wants the little birds to leave and go to a different place. The protection for this season has served its purpose. God will provide protection for the little birds in the next season … in a different place.
The same thing is true in our lives. God will provide protection and care for those who love Him, but just like the little birds, it is according to season. There will be times in our life when the “season” changes … and God wants us to go to a new and different place. God will provide protection for us in the next “season” … but we must be in the place God wants us to be.
The protection which God has provided for the deer is camouflage coats, which helps them to blend in to the forest.
The forest during the winter has certain shades of color and hue. The trees are bare of leaves, so all is varying shades of muted browns and grey tones. Because of this, the winter coat which God gives the deer is colored and patterned to blend in to the winter color-palette of the forest.
But now that Spring is here, the leaves are coming out on all the trees and the overall color-palette of the forest is changing. There are now varying shades of greens, blending together with all the many different browns and greys. Because of this, the summer coat for the deer needs to be colored and patterned to blend in to this new forest color-palette.
To this end, the warm furry winter coat of the deer, colored and patterned for the winter forest-scene, sheds … and underneath, the deer have a lighter summer coat, colored and patterned for the summer forest-scene.
Here you can see a close up of one of the deer, as its furry winter coat is in the process of shedding … and underneath you can see its lighter, different-toned summer coat.
God’s provision and care for the deer is the forest. Their food is in the forest. Their camouflage protection is perfectly designed for blending in to the forest. God has provided protection and care for the deer … and that place is the forest.
That place is not underneath my house.
There is no food for the deer underneath my house. Their camouflage protection will not do them any good underneath my house. In fact, if a bobcat, coyote, or cougar were to come upon the deer underneath my house, they would be trapped … and in this place they would be vulnerable to danger. Underneath my house is not a place where deer belong.
In the same way, God will provide protection and care for those who love and follow Him. But we need to be in the place God wants us to be. If we choose to be like the deer, and to hang out in places where we do not belong, then we too will be vulnerable.
(Can you spot the four deer in the photo?)
