Mostly Feathered Friends

Hello Faraway Friend!

Weather in the Pacific Northwest is glorious and we are moving confidently toward spring.  Snow drops are finishing and the daffodils are peeking up from under the dormant shrubbery.  That might not sit well with those of you who are sick of winter and waiting for the ground to thaw, but let me reassure you, spring will come.  A pair of juncos have returned to nest over my daughter’s bedroom window, proving to be a better alarm clock than any I have purchased.  God knew what he was doing when He made birds.   

Which leads me to my next point, the truth is, we need to discuss Carl’s behavior … again.  Though, I have nightmares about becoming a crazy bird blogger, more than one of you wanted to know how many eggs she laid and how she was doing after my last entry.  Since you asked, I thought I would answer the question honestly and leave it to the Lord to try and pull some mildly uplifting, spiritual encouragement out of a post that has gone to the birds.   

When we last left our fair budgie hero, she was busy laying eggs.  A good number of them.  After Carl laid her seventh egg, I decided to contact the avian vet - again.  (Nicest vet ever!)  The good Dr. suggested that it was time to take Carl’s nesting box and eggs out of her cage, in order to discourage egg laying behavior.  I was conflicted.  As much as I wanted Carl to stop laying eggs, I didn't want to make her depressed.  I had read enough about depressed budgies on budgie forums. Removing her eggs, I was certain, would upset her.  However, endless egg laying can be hard on even the most enthusiastic of God’s creatures.  I took the good doctor’s advice and removed the nesting box that evening.  

The next morning, I interceded for Carl during my prayer time.  I prayed she wouldn't be sad but happy to take a break from her reproductive efforts.  When I lifted the blanket off her cage an hour later, it was not the face of a woeful, forlorn bird that met my gaze.  I had miscalculated.  Sitting there was a steely eyed, vexed feathered fury.  Well, mostly feathered.  She was so cross at me she had pulled out a good number of her feathers in protest. 

Sitting in the cage, was an angry, partially naked, small shivering bird. Because that is what happens if you are a justifiably angry bird who pulls out your feathers, you get cold.  I stared at angry bird in shock.  “What have you done?!” I asked, somewhat needlessly.  “What do you think?!” she replied and bit my finger.  We started at one another; me in amazement and she in defiance.  After some more staring and wondering, we called a truce and I headed out to find some means of heating the naked, angry bird.

It was a week I can tell you.  Fairly quickly, Carl forgot why she was angry and moved on to other things.  This is the upside of having a brain the size of a popcorn kernel.  We purchased a heating pad to place in the cage to ensure our naked budgie didn't freeze to death.  It was kind of sad.

But the entire situation did get me thinking about my own defiance.  Exactly how do I behave when I suffer a setback or a disappointment?  Sometimes, I give the Lord the silent treatment.  I refuse to come to Him in prayer, refuse to speak to Him because “prayer doesn't work.”  There are so many ways to broadcast our disappointment with His sovereignty.  We skip church, refuse to meet with friends, watch too much t.v. all ways of pulling out our feathers in protest when life goes wrong.

And so friend, can I caution you this week?  Are feathers flying?  Are you angry at your heavenly Father for the way things have gone lately?  Feeling persecuted by your Lord? Don’t leave it a moment longer.  Even if you have done something foolish as a result, come and ask Him for help to shore up your disappointment and lack.  Ask for forgiveness, come before Him and be made whole.      

This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.  If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.  But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.  If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.  If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. 1 John 1:5-10

I’m praying for you this week,

xoxKaren