Think about the names we are given and the names we are called through our lives. Do they define us?

HI, THANKS FOR STOPPING BY MY BLOG COMING FROM THE GREAT LAKE DOWNUNDER IN AUS!

When I was young I had a pretty all yellow canary in a cage. Canaries were more common as a pet then. Now more Aussie’s would own budgerigars.

Canaries were whistlers and very uplifting, whereas budgies chatter and are people friendly. Plus owners like to teach them to talk. Some have quite a broad vocabulary.

Putting my canary outside for fresh air in my young informative years required intense responsibility due to the presence of butcher birds which lived in the area and were said to hypnotize canaries in their cages. This allowed the predator to get its beak into the cage and kill the canary. And so we had to observe them very closely.

Butcher Birds incidentally are native only to Australasia and are of the magpie genus. Butcher Birds, however are not the only birds to kill the chicks of other birds. Kookaburras do too, and there are others.

No one ever told me what a Butcher Bird looked like and I imagined they were like crow or even a buzzard – big and mean. Their name was defined by their habits. When they kill baby birds, they tend to ‘hang’ their food on a twig – like meat on a butcher’s hook!

In our garden on the Quiet Side of the Great Lake we have two resident butcher birds. Yes, they are a couple. I was pleasantly surprised to find that these are very cute little birds. Take a look!

Not only is the butcher bird, (I call ours Billy), cute to look at, he has one of the most musical bird-calls and songs, a little like the Australian Magpie of the same family who is larger and is also a great caroller.

Take a listen just follow the link:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlAb-ObjIH4

My perception of this bird was based on his name. Meat hanging on a butcher’s hook is not a pretty sight. And so it begged the question:

“What’s in a name?”

Some people don’t like the name they were given at birth, and they let those bad feelings define them. Others are given nick names – some of them cruel and find themselves so defined.

The wonderful thing is in our salvation God sees us through Christ – perfect and pure and He delights in every one of us. The Bible says so – many times. As a child of God you are special. He meets you at the point of your life where you are and with all the baggage you are carrying, no matter the sin; thankfully He doesn’t leave you there. In His grace He brings forgiveness, love, joy, peace eternal life and so much more.

I love this quote: “God is love. He didn’t need us. But he wanted us. And that is the most amazing thing.”  ~ Rick Warren – Christian author and preacher

Enjoy your week,

Blessings,

Marilyn