Happy Hatchday

"Jesus declared, 'I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. . . .I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit'"

(John 3:3-5).

It has been 14 days since the first egg and 12 days since the third egg was laid. Right on target.  I could tell something was different today, because Lady Robin was chirping a lot and standing on the edge of the nest as much as she was sitting on it.  So I took a quick peek and saw that two of the eggs had hatched.  The parents have already tidied the nest and removed the empty shells. Baby birds are hatched blind, naked, and helpless, just as human babies are. They are totally dependent on their parents for survival.

Seeing new life is so exciting, including within the plant and animal kingdoms.  It is more exciting to see new human life, and even more thrilling to witness new spiritual life in the Kingdom of God's grace.  We humans are born not only physically but also spiritually blind, naked, and helpless. The Holy Spirit, through the Word of God and Baptism, creates new life within us--revealing Christ to us, clothing us with His righteousness, and strengthening us with His power.

"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time" (1 Peter 1:3-5).