As the owner of several Bird feeders, squirrels have so many times been a real pain. They can be destructive and messy as they chew through your sock thistle feeder or the plastic on your “squirrel-proof” feeder. I have also gone to great lengths to keep them from my feeders. In order to effectively do this I have watched them closely, and in doing so I have learned three things from the squirrels at my house.

Squirrels Do Not Quickly Give Up

When a little frustration comes their way, they do not quickly give up. When you cut down the crab apple tree they used to get to your feeders, they discover they can get there from your bird bath. When you move the bird bath, they continue to try over and over again until they convince themselves that can not do it that way anymore. Instead of finding a new feeder when this happens, I need to find a new way of attack. They will continue to try 50 different ways that don’t work until they find the 1 that does.

I wish I had their spirit when it comes to spending time with God. Sometimes due to schedule change or some other change in my world, I can't seem to complete my quiet time. Maybe the time is wrong, or the room is too distracting, or my favorite Bible was left at the office. It doesn’t matter, I just need to find another way.

Squirrels Store Food For Later

After I finally found the perfect combination and height for my feeders I was feeling sorry for the squirrels. Well, maybe I'm not sorry, but I missed their bizarre antics to get at my food. So in an effort at cheap entertainment and to keep them occupied so they didn’t find a new way to my feeders, I got a squirrel feeder.

It is a wheel with 4 arms that mounts to a tree. On each of the 4 arms, I can hang a cob of corn. The wheel spins freely as the squirrel tries to get the corn off of it. Instant free entertainment. So now the squirrels and their friends all come to my tree and get corn. Then I watch them fill their cheeks and ruff off (often to the neighbor's yard) to bury their gold. They need twice as much food in the winter, so they spend the summer eating and storing it all over their territory.

Sometimes I tend to look at my time in the word as just a snack for the moment. Just enough food to get me through the day. I need to be more like a squirrel and put this food from the Word away for later use. I should bury it all over my territory. Not just all over my mind and heart but on the mirror in my bathroom, the walls of my office, and even he music I listen to. I need to have His Word available to me at all times. Therethe are seasons when I need it much more than normal.

When Squirrels Eat A Lot, They Get FAT

Now I know what you are thinking, “Wait – this is news”? It might sound simple but there are really two parts to the whole fat squirrel lesson,; I. While I have not and never will “name” the squirrels that come to my feeder I recognize them, and I can tell when the squirrel has gone from lean to fat. I also watch them get fat, I see how long they spend at the feeder.

I know some of you are trying to find out how I am going to tie this one in… Well, here goes. I can tell just by looking at the squirrel that he is fat, well fed. While I know that people can tell that I am well-fed on food, I wonder if they can tell when I am well-fed on The Word. Does it show that I have been spending time in the Word? Am I prepared with the Word stored away in me for the lean times? I do not study the Word so people can see how much time I spend in it, but I know that it should be evident in my life when I spend time in the Word.

I hope you are open enough to learn something, even if it comes from a squirrel.