In Heavenly Places

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God Cares for You, April 17

Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they? Matthew 6:26. HP 114.1

As we look upon the lofty trees waving with fresh, green foliage, and the earth covered with its green velvet carpet, and the flowers and shrubs springing from the earth, we should remember that all these beauties of nature have been used by Christ in teaching His grand lessons of truth. As we look upon the fields of waving grain, and listen to the merry songsters in their leafy homes, and view the boats upon the water of the lake, we should remember the words of Christ upon the lakeside, in the groves, and on the mountains, and the lessons there taught by Him should be repeated to us by the similar objects of nature which surround us.35The Sanitarium Patients at Goguac Lake, 10. HP 114.2

He made use of the lofty trees, the cultivated soil, the barren rocks, the flowers of beauty struggling through the clefts, the everlasting hills, the glowing flowers of the valley, the birds caroling their songs in the leafy branches, the spotless lily resting in purity upon the bosom of the water. All these objects that made up the living scene around them were made the medium by which His lessons were impressed upon the minds of His hearers. They were thus brought home to the hearts of all, ... leading them gently up from the contemplation of the Creator's works in nature to nature's God.... HP 114.3

In one of His most impressive lessons Christ says, “Behold the fowls of the air; for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them....” HP 114.4

The Great Teacher is here leading out minds to understand the parental care and love which God has for His children. He directs them to observe the birds flitting from tree to tree, or skimming upon the bosom of the lake, without a flutter of distrust or fear. God's eye is upon these little creatures; He provides them food; He answers all their simple wants. Jesus inquires, “Are ye not much better than they?” ... HP 114.5

If God cares for and preserves the little birds, will He not have far greater love and care for the creatures formed in His image? 36The Sanitarium Patients at Goguac Lake, 9, 10, 14-16. HP 114.6