On top of an old wooden box telephone hanging on the wall in Mother Rowe's veranda, a robin built her nest. She faithfully set on the eggs and hatched all four. When the babies were just two days old, tragedy struck. A cat got the mother robin during the night. Mother found red, brown, and grey feathers on the veranda floor when she came out in the morning. Later, we checked the nest, thinking that all the babies would have died from the cold.

To our surprise, one baby was still living. I put the nest into a four-quart basket and set it on the wood cook stove oven door. The baby needed to be warmed quickly while I found worms in the garden. Holding a worm with tweezers in one hand, I opened the baby's mouth. Gulp, the worm went down. The job of raising a young robin had begun.

Our dog, Buster, watched intently. He could not understand why there was a bird in the house. I found that I was feeding this young bird every ten minutes during the day. Soon, I just had to tap the basket handle and the head would pop up for a worm.

While I was upstairs gathering laundry on the fourth day, I heard the kitchen door slam shut. I knew that it was Buster letting himself out. After putting a load of laundry in the washing machine, I went to feed the bird. The baby robin was gone!

Later, when I was hanging out the clothes, I saw Buster sniffing under a small bush. I went over to investigate and found the baby robin alive, cold and hungry. Buster was scolded. He walked back to the house behind me with head down, ashamed. The little robin was put back into its nest, and it welcomed a dew worm lunch.

We moved the robin to our veranda when it was big enough to leave the nest. Buster watched the bird, but never touched it. The little bird would sit on the dog's dish when Buster ate. It would hop onto Buster's head when the dog would try to sleep. Buster never growled at the young robin. They were friends, even though they didn't look the same, think the same, or speak the same language.

When the robin's tail feathers grew long enough, it was able to fly up onto a branch in the maple tree and sing. Buster would sit on the ground, look up, and whine merrily. Even though the sound was different, the tune was the same. Dog and bird lived in harmony, setting an example for us humans. The robin migrated south when the time was right.

Galatians 5:14 – The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." (NIV)

Our televisions are saturated with programs on racism and prejudice. I ask myself, Do I have derogatory thoughts against people of different colour, religion, or lifestyle?

Jesus Christ taught us what love is:

1 John 3:16 – This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. (NIV)

Prayer: God, help us to speak and to show Your love to family, friends, and neighbours. Help us to be willing to share the Gospel. Amen.

Forward this devotional     Share on Facebook

About the author:

Ruth Rowe <ruthjohn.rowe@gmail.com>
Elliot Lake, Ontario, Canada
Send your feedback to the author