As I was driving down 2nd Street in the northeast section of Washington, D.C., I spotted a bird crossing the street ahead of me. There was no way I could press the brakes in time to avoid smashing it. So I prepared for the worst and began to shut my eyes. I know this is not a good thing to do while driving, but I just couldn’t bear to watch the little brown bird die beneath my wheels. Anyway, just before my eyes closed, the little bird flew away. “What an idiot!” I hollered. “Why didn’t it fly in the first place?”
After intense psychotherapy and some in-depth interviews with other birds, I learned that there are several reasons why the bird (let’s call her Sally) would choose to walk when she could fly. Sally might be looking for leftovers from last night’s dinner. She might be getting over a bad relationship or looking to start another one. But, most probably, Sally had been hanging around pigeons too long.
Sally’s near-death experience beneath my truck, taught me a valuable lesson. There are many Christians who are meant to fly and are able to fly, but are choosing to walk. We are wasting the gifts that God has given us. We may think it’s safer or more fun to walk with the pigeons. The problem is that we’ve forgotten that we are special and that God created each of us Himself. He gave each of us a personal gift and a unique talent directly from Him. He didn’t delegate that job to any of angels. Our God-given gift shines with intensity deep within our hearts. We can’t hide our light from Him, and we shouldn’t try to hide it from others. It is that one part of each of us that can be excellent. It is that one something that we can better than anyone else.
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.Matthew 5:15-17
