Articles
Talons of a Great Horned Owl
R E F L E C T I O N S Thoughts on nature and the Christian faith - 7/26/21 ______________________________ "Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain." - I Cor. 15:1-2 | |
You are looking at the talons of a great horned owl. I photographed this fellow at an avian center in the mountains of southern West Virginia. Since the birds at this center are used to humans, I was able to get this close shot. Great horned owls are large owls and their size and the power of their talons enable them to prey upon many creatures from small mice and frogs to geese and even house cats. One thing is for sure, if these talons seize you, there is no getting away. It takes at least 28 pounds of force to even move these talons once they are embedded. Suffice it to say, once something is in this owl's grip escape is nearly impossible. These birds will hold fast no matter what. Christians are instructed to hold fast to something as well. The gospel which we received, in which we stand, and by which we are saved is to be firmly and tenaciously grasped both with our hearts as well as our minds. We are never to let it slip from our grasp or be replaced by anything else. There are many forces both within and without the church that may tempt us to loosen our hold on the gospel and replace it with whatever the latest fad sweeping through the churches may be. But, if you are like me, there are times when my allegiance wavers and I let my guard down and loosen my grip. Whenever that happens, God always finds a way to remind me of what is truly important. So, hold fast to what is at the core of our faith. And remember this, it is not our hold on God that ultimately triumphs, it is God's hold upon us. - John
