We have squirrel wars in our yard. I have no idea what precipitates these events. I just watch them unfold.

There is a water oak just outside the sunroom where I pray. Baxter planted it when Stephie was born. He dug it up in the woods where we live. He had planted one when Rob was born. We like to plant trees to commemorate life events.

This water oak is huge now. The squirrels build nests in it and raise their young. I enjoy watching the whole event unfold. But in recent years, there is a squirrel that arrives to destroy the nest.

The first time it happened, I was having a cup of tea. Suddenly, there was a loud shrill chatter. I looked out to see small twigs, large twigs, and moss falling from the tree. A squirrel was screaming and fussing. He was in such a rage. I’d never seen such a sight. Why was he destroying the nest?

I didn’t know if he was the “new squirrel in town” trying to make a place for himself. Or could he be the squirrel I always saw and another one had stolen his old place? I had no idea…but this is the third year of this war.

Each side is determined the other will not occupy this particular tree.

I considered just how territorial we can be…just like the squirrels. We believe that things belong to us. We think that we have a ministry or a mission for God. But just as the tree does not belong to the squirrels, nothing really belongs to us either. We are just stewards of what Father allows us to use.

Why then do we allow ourselves to be drawn into divisive “wars” over things that aren’t ours?
Why can’t we be content with what He entrusts to us? Why can’t we live to glorify Him and not be concerned with “territory”?
Just something to consider.