Anyways, I asked my mom if I could help her out in the garden. She was a little taken back by my request at first. We went outside and before she was showing me what I could do, she began talking to me about baby birds her and my dad had seen that morning. She was saying that there was a nest on the front porch of our house with baby birds in it. Earlier that morning my mom and dad were watching the baby birds learn how to fly. One of the birds was having a little bit of trouble, it would fly for a little and then come back to the nest or other times it would fly for a little and fall to the ground. All the while the mother bird was right there flying with the bird, helping it out and coaxing it to try again. Eventually the bird would fly more for longer amounts of time and soon it was gone. It learned how to fly!!
( I am sure there is more to the story but I forget all of it, but this is what I remember and what stuck out to me.)
My first thought when hearing the story was, 'the bird has wings, and it has to learn how to fly?' Hearing that story was so encouraging to me for a few reasons, 1, being, I could very much relate to the baby bird. It was almost surprising or I never really thought of the fact that birds fall, I mean I know they fall and I see them a lot on the ground, but it's almost hard to imagine them having to try again and again to fly, even though they have wings, and it seems like flying would come so natural to them. Also what surprised me is that I have always imagined the mother bird pushing out the baby bird and expecting it to just fly almost on the first chance. This was not the case with the birds my parents saw. The birds still needed practice and a time of getting their wings stronger.
For me, there have been times where I have tried something or gone to a new place, and I've fallen or, messed up and it was a picture for me to keep on trying and get up again. During the summer it was even a picture of my next step of moving to Colorado, and the thoughts of fear of, what if I fail, or mess up? Those thoughts have been pretty real to me. It's like in that moment of hearing about the baby bird, to me it was like just knowing, it's ok to mess up or to fall, but I just got step out of the nest and keep trying, and soon I will began to fly as well and my wings will become stronger. God often times speaks to me and teaches me things through that of birds. There is a quote in the song Black Bird, by the Beatles that says, "Take these broken wings and learn how to Fly!" I love that quote so much. God is wanting me to fly with Him and not be afraid of falling, and to know that He is like that mother bird who would help the bird keep learning how to fly, and fly with the baby bird. Hearing the story of the baby bird was so liberating for me.
After that, my mom began to show me the beauty that was in the garden. It was so rewarding to see my mom treasure her garden. I loved seeing the beauty that had sprung forth all around, from the hard work and time she spent in it, from something that was once bare and full of rocks. I enjoyed seeing her excitement as she showed me certain kinds of flowers that were in bloom, and seeing her heart come alive to what she enjoyed doing. I began to appreciate and understand a little more about gardens that day. After that I started on the projects my mom had for me to do, all the while having a thankfulness and an awe of God, and of the lessons I learned that day. A little while later, work was interrupted by a huge afternoon thunderstorm which was another wonderful gift to me, in knowing that I love thunderstorms.
A seed of joy had been planted in my heart that day as I chose to look past my own world of hurt and confusion, to a much greater world of things God was wanting me to see about His kingdom of Love, and what that looked like. On that particular day, love was as simple as choosing to serve, and be present, not to hide or focus on myself. That day was a choice of choosing life. Do I always choose the right choice? No, but there is always another chance. In fact everyday there are so many choices and decisions of choosing God and His way, rather than our own way. In those moments of choosing the Lord rather than our struggle, that is worship to Him. God loves it. In turn we get to bless Him, and He gives back so much more than we can even imagine. I love this verse in Joshua that says,
"choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve,.... But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." -Joshua 24:15
Every day we can choose the Lord, find His Joy, and live in the Kingdom of His Extravagant Love, even in the midst of what we are going through!!!! I want to live in His realm of Love!!
(picture is not mine, I just thought it was cool)
