As I stood at the crest of the hill, God’s beauty lay before me. It was as if God was painting a beautiful masterpiece just for me. The sun was beginning to rise and the sky was splashed with vibrant color. Standing alone with my God that morning, I marveled at who He was. Wanting to get closer to this breathtaking sight, I began my descent down the hill towards the sunrise, singing and worshipping to my awesome God. Birds joined in with their sweet melodies as I
walked along. God’s glory was all around me. Along the roadway, families of deer had emerged from their forest hideaways but seemed oblivious to the beauty that lay before them. Their focus was on eating at that moment and the stranger passing by.
Coming to the bottom of the hill and rounding the bend, I started my ascent up another small hill. I noticed a sign up ahead of me and, as I got closer, I could read the words written on it in bold print – “PLEASE DON’T FEED THE WILDLIFE”. I immediately laughed out loud because only the day before had I seen many well-meaning people throwing bread and crackers to a group of deer that had ventured near. How ironic I thought that this sign was at a place where few people gathered. I understood the necessity of the sign as the park’s rangers didn’t want the wildlife to become dependent on people for their food and sustenance.
Continuing on my walk, the Lord impressed upon me the importance of a sign like that for the animal world. But in our world where we live as Christians, God doesn’t put up signs like that. In fact, he wants us to do just the opposite. God wants us to “FEED THE WILDLIFE” – those who are unbelievers, who don’t know God and who don’t have a personal relationship with his son, Jesus
Christ. God wants them to become dependent upon Him not only for their food – their daily bread – but everything else they need as well. God tells us in His Word to “feed the hungry” and those who are living the WILD LIFE are hungry for more than the world has to offer. So as you get ready to start your day, remember to pack some extra “bread” because you may run into some “wildlife” who are hungry and you’ll have just what they need.
John 6:35 – “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”
-Ann Ford
