Turkey Buzzards

It is a common sight this time of year.
You will see them on the roofs of houses.
Their wingspan is anywhere from 63-72 inches.
They are an eerie sight as they are silhouetted against the fall sky.

I see them on my walk many mornings.
They definitely have preferred houses upon which they roost.
I see them roosting in the leafless trees.
They have the appearance of a sentry, ever watching, ever waiting.

They are often found in a spread-winged stance.
This position dries their wings and warms their bodies.
It is an ominous sight to see.
Entire roof lines are covered with this vulture as they roost wing to wing.

They are known as the turkey buzzard or the turkey vulture.
They feed on carrion; the dead and decaying flesh of an animal.
Their keen eyes and sense of smell allow them to locate their food source quickly.
They prefer the carrion of animals which are recently dead.

As I was making a pot of soup on a chilly fall day, I noticed something back in the woods.
There was movement as I saw something perched on a fallen tree.
Suddenly there was more movement; there was the familiar hopping I have seen before.
The buzzard looks very awkward when it walks and it struggles to take flight.

There must be something dead in the woods, I said out loud though no one was home.
A fox, a rabbit, a raccoon, or a squirrel; the possibilities were endless.
I saw the familiar hopping from the fallen tree to the ground.
A vultures’ feast in the shadow of my woods.

I was preparing a delicious soup for my family as buzzards were feasting on dead flesh.
I shuddered a bit, thinking of what I would find if I walked back there.
I thought of the dietary laws of the Old Testament.
I thought of how God protected His people.

These are the birds you are to detest and not eat because they are detestable: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, the red kite, any kind of black kite, any kind of raven, the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, the white owl, the desert owl, the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe, and the bat.
(Leviticus 11:13-19)

This was not a random list.
God did not indiscriminately forbid these birds to be eaten as food.
These birds were to be avoided because they were scavengers.
They fed on dead things.

Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at My word.” Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the raven to feed you there.” So, he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. (1 Kings 17:1-6)

When I read that story to my youngest daughter as a preschooler, she looked confused.
I was thinking that she had trouble with the fact that the ravens were feeding Elijah.
She had seen vultures eating animals on the side of the road.
To my surprise, all she asked was, Elijah had breakfast and dinner but what about lunch?

Feeding on dead things.
Something the enemy loves to do; in fact that is all the enemy wants to do.
The enemy does not want the souls of men and women and children to be reborn.
The enemy wants their souls to belong to him, not to the Living God.

Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

The enemy of our souls is waiting to devour.
The enemy of our souls perches and roosts and waits.
The enemy can quickly detect those who are most vulnerable.
The enemy’s prey are those who have not been saved by the Lord Jesus.

Those that presume they have all the time in the world to think about such things.
Those that believe they are saved because they went to church all their life.
Those that feel secure because of all the good things they have done.
Those that do not have the time to come to Jesus in repentance and ask forgiveness.

For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him. (2 Chronicles 16:9)

The enemy may perch, but God sits on His throne.
The enemy may roost, but God reigns.
The enemy may prey on dead things, but in Christ we are born again.
The enemy is awkward, struggling to take flight but God is majestic and full of splendor.

The enemy wants to devour.
God wants to strengthen.

The enemy feeds on death.
God is eternal, ever alive, ever merciful, ever forgiving, ever loving.

Turn away from the enemy, which only leads to death.
Turn to the God for salvation through His son, Jesus, for Life.