Thomas Trock

Mountain Cathedrals: The Outdoors From a Different Perspective

Raccoons Otters Skunks Marmots

Marmot I

Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. – 1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from one degree of glory to even more glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. – 2 Corinthians 3:18 AMP Do not be deceived, my …

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Skunks II

but at the place where the LORD your God chooses to make His name abide, there you shall sacrifice the Passover at twilight, at the going down of the sun, at the time you came out of Egypt. – Deuteronomy 16:6 NKJV Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was …

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Snow Tracks – Raccoon

Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43:19 “Come now, and let us reason together,” Says the LORD, “Though your sins are like scarlet, They shall be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They shall be as wool. Isaiah 1:18 On an early morning hike through freshly fallen snow, Cosmos the Wonderdog, my wife, and I came upon the tracks pictured above. They were probably made just a few hours earlier, …

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Skunk Bait

When a man’s ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him. Proverbs 16:7 There have been several generations of a family of skunks near our home for at least a couple of decades. Having observed them off and on during this period, I think skunks tend to get a bad rap. At times over these many years, I’ve stumbled upon these critters whilst on a walkabout. We usually happen upon each other in the late evening, or sometimes even at night. Each time, the skunk could have easily sprayed me and made me …

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Raccoon II

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry; but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all Psalm 34:14-19 NIV Not long ago …

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Otters

You open Your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing. Psalm 145:16 Perhaps it is because I rarely see river otters that I enjoy watching them so much. That, along with their unusual but almost constant chortling and purring grunts make them delightful entertainment as I spend a day on the water. The North American river otter has a life span of about ten years in the wild. It weighs between ten and thirty pounds and seems to be constantly on the move during waking hours. Otters need to consume a lot of food to fuel their high …

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Raccoon I

For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Romans 8:19 NLT One of the interesting things about living in the mountains is you never know who might show up in the neighborhood at any given time. Raccoons can be found almost all over North America. They are extremely adaptable animals and can eat a large variety of food. In the wild they like wooded areas that have easy access to water and vegetation. Because they are so adaptable, they can also live in suburban areas as well. These critters …

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