Thursday, February 26, 2009

Come on now, fly!

As traffic came to a screeching halt, I sat in helpless frustration. Peering through my windshield, I could see nothing to explain the disruption of our progress. Wild honking quickly drew my attention to the goose attempting to make his way across five lanes of traffic. I asked myself a question I've pondered many times while watching winged creatures cross the road on foot, "Why in the world is he walking when he has the ability to fly?" Incredible!

Why indeed? Why do we humans allow ourselves to crawl through circumstances over which we could soar? I have pity when I watch Friend Goose, wild eyed and overwhelmed, stuck out in traffic. I'm not always so patient or generous with myself.

The first class of my current semester in seminary, I sat wild eyed and overwhelmed as I observed the flow of mental traffic, as those capable, quick minds of the other students, much further along in their schooling, grasped the concepts our professor introduced. I forgot about any intellectual skills I might possess as I crawled my way through the class.

I wandered around wide eyed and blundering as I experienced interaction with the police yet again when I needed their assistance picking up my daughters from their weekly visitation. Shame and hopelessness threatened to overwhelm me as I stood there rooted to the spot, not moving forward, let alone soaring through the moment.

As I watched the goose move back & forth, futilely attempting to get to the other side of his problem, I was struck by the desire to become a goose as well, so I could come alongside of him, show him where to go, remind him of his wings, and encourage him to fly! It startled me to realize that is exactly what Christ did for us! God came alongside of us in human form, so He could talk to us in a language we'd understand. Jesus entered into our reality, transforming Himself in order to show us the way, reminding us to stretch our wings & soar as we are transformed by His redeeming love. We don't need to remain stuck when we encounter Christ.

May we hear His voice loud & clear, reminding us of our ability to fly. May we have the strength & courage to soar into the embrace of His love.

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