Squirrels, Bird Seed and God's Word

In our backyard, we have several very large oak trees...and along with the oak trees we have quite a large population of squirrels. I love to watch the squirrels running through the tree tops, jumping from limb to limb, chasing each other and frequently jumping from a limb to the roof of my house...with quite a thud! I remember several years ago in the spring and summer watching the squirrels diligently gather acorns from the oak trees and then bury them in various parts of our yard. They were busy little squirrels, in almost constant motion, storing up food for the winter. When winter came and all the acorns were gone from the oak trees, the squirrels knew exactly where to go to find the "treasures" they had worked so hard to put away. I was amazed to see them over and over again dig up acorns, never once missing the mark but every time finding the food they had buried months before. It occured to me when I first began to watch the squirrels work to put away food for winter that I could learn a lesson from them. Taking a cue from my friendly, furry friends, I, too, need to hide God's Word deep in my heart so that when "winter" comes...when the cold wind of trials blows or the icy fingers of discouragement squeeze my heart...I can "dig up" those "acorns" of God's Word that I buried long before they were needed...and I'll know just where to find exactly the "acorn" I need for that moment. But I've begun to notice something about our squirrels lately. A few years ago we put up a bird feeder in the backyard. Believe me when I tell you it was no small task keeping the squirrels out of that bird feeder. My brilliant husband finally devised a way to keep them out and it has worked for quite a while now. But the squirrels are very resourceful. They've learned that all they have to do is wait for the birds to come to the feeder and shovel out handfuls of birdseed onto the ground...where the squirrels are patiently waiting to enjoy a feast of food they didn't have to work for at all. Now our squirrels seem quite content to just sit and let someone else feed them. I'm sure that they still store away a few acorns here and there, but for the most part they just wait for the falling birdseed. But they've encountered a small problem. Eventually, the bird feeder runs out of birdseed. There's one thing the squirrels didn't bargain for...their free meal depends completely on me! If I fill the feeder with birdseed, they have a feast. If I forget to fill it, they have a famine. And that's exactly what happens to me if I depend on somebody else to provide my spiritual food for me...to spoon feed me, if you will. As long as I'm getting my "birdseed" provided for me, I don't have to put out any effort and can just sit back and enjoy being fed. But sooner or later the birdseed is going to run out. I cannot depend solely on someone else to feed me what I need spiritually any more than our squirrels need to depend on me to fill the bird feeder so that they can feast on birdseed. It's a great thing to listen to preachers and teachers of the Word and be built up in the faith because of them. But we must do our own "digging" and bury our own "acorns" too. When the preachers and the teachers are gone and you're alone facing the "winter," it's those buried acorns of God's Word that will feed you and sustain you, no matter how hard or how long the "winter." I think Job said it best ..."I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food." (Job 23:12b)