Lessons from the Birds

Birds are an object of fascination in my house. We have a series of birdfeeders in our back yard and a big window to watch them from. From chickadees to robins to wrens to cowbirds to blue birds; you name it, we probably have seen them! Each bird is so unique.

 

Matthew 10:29 talks about how God cares for the birds: “What is the price of two sparrows--one copper coin? But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it.”

God cares for each bird and I think we can learn from them.

 

Geese: These big birds always stick together. Very rarely do you see a single goose; they’re usually in pairs. They eat together. Nest together. Fly together. Protect each other. They are a family and a team. They have each other’s backs.

 

Ecclesiastes 4:9 says, “Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed.”

Blue jays and mockingbirds: These birds are feisty! They chase away anything that they think may threaten their territory, even if that thing may be much larger than itself. They are bold and don’t let evil overcome them. By doing this, predators that could do harm tend to flee or just avoid them all together!

 

James 4:7 says, “So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

 

Cardinals: Even in the winter, these birds stand out. They’re bright red color speaks for them and provides some cheer on bleak or snowy days. They also are very self-sacrificing birds. When they have babies, they pluck each other to provide soft feathers for their nests. They use what they have to provide for their families.

Deuteronomy 16:17 says, “All must give as they are able, according to the blessings given to them by the LORD your God.”

Blue birds: These birds are so cheary! Not only are they beautiful, but they have such a pretty chirp. Bluebirds were known for bringing happiness in ancient China because wherever they went, a joyful song followed.

Psalm 100:2 says, “Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.”

Robins: These energetic birds are constantly looking for food, usually worms. When it rains, they are the first ones out looking for worms that may have come out of the ground. When they are not looking for food, they are building and adding to their nests with twigs and sticks and anything else they can find. I don’t think I have ever seen a robin just sunning himself; they are always keeping busy with something!

Proverbs 14:23 says, “All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty.”

All these birds and more can teach us valuable lessons. God cares for each bird and He cares for us too.

Matthew 6:26 says, “Look at the birds. They don't plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren't you far more valuable to him than they are?”

Birdseed may be for the birds, but Christ came for us and He promises to take care of our every need. In that, we can put our hope.

Convicted: Jesus Washed His Disciples Feet

Every New Year's Day, my local church sponsors a group of ladies with a foundation called CARITAS. These ladies come from all kinds of backgrounds, mostly rough ones. Many have been abused or have various drug and substance abuse related issues. Some of them have been thrown out of their homes and shunned by their family.

 

These women, more so than some of us, know what it is to crave love because they have been rejected for so long. Many understand the desperate need we all have for hope. Most of them are Christians already or very open to hearing about the Gospel.  

 

Over the course of New Year's Day, church members are invited to come and play board games with these women, eat with them, talk to them, and fellowship with them. This year I decided to go.

 

A team of volunteers served the ladies lunch and then one of the ladies volunteering pulled out a bag of nail polish. She asked if anyone wanted their nails painted. At first, some of the CARITAS ladies were cautious, but the more we talked to them and pampered them, the more they opened up about themselves.

 

The stories shared in that room are not ones that I can share on this blog, but needless to say, many of them were heart-wrenching.

 

In the middle of all this, one of the CARITAS ladies asked if I might be able to paint her toe nails. Up until that point, the lady who brought the nail polish and I had only been painting fingernails.

 

One thing ya'll should know is that I hate feet. I hate touching feet. I hate feet being on me. I hate the feel of feet and the smell of feet. Feet just are not my thing. I am happy to paint my own toe nails, but in that moment where I was asked to paint someone else's toe nails, I balked.

 

In my head, there was a battle that went on. Every excuse imaginable came to mind as to why I could not and would not paint these women's feet. The arguments in my head were silenced, however, when I felt the Holy Spirit remind me of the story of Jesus washing His disciples feet.

 

Jesus. The Man who died on a cross for me. Jesus. My Creator and Redeemer. Jesus. The whole reason I was even in this place. Jesus. The Man who washed dirty feet.

 

In that moment, shame engulfed me. As long as I could be comfortable, I was willing to serve, but the minute I was asked to do something that might be hard for me, I made up excuses.

 

Jesus is the most selfless and loving person to ever walk this earth, yet He never demanded thanks or applause. He took on the form of a servant, though He holds all authority in Heaven and earth in His hands.

 

If Jesus could wash dirty feet, was it really too much to ask for me to paint these women's feet? Is any task that I am asked to do beyond me in light of the fact that Jesus washed feet and even died for me?

 

Sometimes Christ washes our feet and sometimes He calls us to be His hands and feet and serve others.

 

With that conviction on my heart, I knelt down and painted these women's feet. Over six women asked if I could paint their feet that day. Tears streamed down many of their faces as I painted their nails. One woman said that she felt like Jesus was painting her feet.

 

I think that day, He may have been.

 

"When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.  “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.  Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."

John 13:12-17

 

 

Children of the Light

This post has been on my heart for a few weeks now and now I am finally sitting down to write it.

I heard a story recently about a girl who was found in an abusive situation in 2008 in Florida where she had been kept in a dark, back room without any windows or lights for many years. When she was found, she was carried outside and all she could do was scream and try and run back into the dark room again.

This young girl had been in the dark for so long, that the light scared her. She didn't know that light was natural and good because she had only known the darkness. I think we are sometimes like that girl.

When we encounter Christ, we are called to come into the light. Darkness has no place where Christ is. However, many of us are so used to the darkness of our world and our sin that we cower and run from the light.

 

Even when we accept Christ and His goodness and put off our old selves, often times we hold onto some of our old ways. Whether that be the pureness of our thoughts, the way we treat others, white lies, the way we look at others, or something else. The darkness has held us for so long that we cannot imagine coming fully into the light.

The problem is that with Christ, light and darkness cannot coexist. We are either for Christ or against Him. Lukewarm is not an option.

Revelations 3 talks of God "spitting out" lukewarm people and Paul often warns Christians in his letters of the danger of being lukewarm. To be cold is better than lukewarm.

1 Thessalonians 5:5 tells us that we are children of the light. "For you are all children of the light and of the day; we don't belong to darkness and night."

And John 1:5 says that, "Light shines in the darkness and the darkness will not overcome it."

 

Martin Luther King said that "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that."

 

God has called us to be children of the light. That is not a destination, but a daily journey. It takes constantly putting to death our old selves and sin. It takes having the courage to admit that we don't have all the answers. It takes humility and the strength to apologize. Most of all, it takes Christ being the center of our lives.

 

We live in a dark world that is growing darker all the time, but we serve the King of the Light! We need not hide in darkness. We need not fear the light. Yes, the light may reveal our pain and ugliness, but it also reveals our need for grace. And, my friends, we all need grace.

 

We cannot even begin to drive out the darkness in our world until we drive out the darkness in ourselves. In Christ though, light can break through the darkness.

 

In Christ, we can be set free from the bondage on sin.

 

In Christ, we can shine.

 

In Christ, we can be children of the light!