The boys and I were having lunch and we saw the baby birds little beaks sticking out over the rim of the nest, waiting for some worms to eat, when all of a sudden one of the babies hopped up on the side of the nest and waited. Lawson and Emerson squealed with excitement as we watched in anticipation for the baby to try and fly!
I was a bit nervous that the baby might fly out and fall to its death right there in front of my boys, which would have been very traumatizing, but nope, that baby bird did pretty good. It did flap and flop that first time out of the nest (bonking its head against the side of our house), but it sat there trying to recover then persevered again, flying across the deck to the land on our grill then across the deck to the yard.
It was neat to watch both the Mama and Daddy bird as they perched up on the deck railing and the tree in our backyard with worms in their beaks, just waiting to offer a little snack for the babies valiant effort. Every time the baby bird flew and landed one of them would hop over and put a worm in the baby's mouth, it was pretty cute to watch, and to see how even birds lovingly watch and take care of their young!
It's interesting because all of us want to succeed, to "fly" well, to not only see our kids "fly", but see ourselves soar too! But you can't fly without first taking a step out of the "nest" (that comfy, cozy spot).
I am co-leading a Beth Moore Bible study with some friends called Beloved Disciple, its the study of the life of John, as I was listening to the first video I was struck by a question Beth posed. She was reading from John 1:35-51, Jesus' first question to his disciples was "What do you want?" and it wasn't in a derogatory or annoyed inflection, it was a sincere, genuine question to His followers, "what do you want?" Beth encouraged us to think about what it is exactly that we want from the Lord. And as I pondered that question the past week, as I have been preparing the study, I can't help but be inspired to pray "big" prayers, to ask God to really speak to me, to show me what He really wants me to accomplish each day--and to know, with full certainty, that I'm doing exactly what He's had planned for me to do. I want my heart to be in full step with His. I love how she says, it's "about finding our way to the heart of Jesus and reclining so closely that our pulse begins to throb in tandem, loving what He loves and hating what He hates." I was telling a friend last night that I want to hear from God in the moment to moment, daily responsibilities, I want to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I'm not missing an opportunity that God has for me. God wants me to articulate myself to Him, I need to talk with him more, I need to share with Him my wants and desires. Beth asked us to write a letter to God stating what we want (not as in financially or physically) but what we want to see Him do, what we'd like to see Him accomplish in our lives or in our family. So I'm about to sit down and pen my "Dear Christ" letter, then I'll seal it up and place it in the back of my book waiting for the 10 week study to conclude. When I'm finished with the study, it'll be interesting to see if the "wants" I'd written about are still the "wants" God is giving me passion for or if He will change my "wants" to something all together different. No matter which, I look forward to this study, to praying big prayers, to seeking God fully and to learning to be a disciple--a pupil, and follower of God's teaching.
I do feel like I'm sort of stepping out of the "nest" as I ask God to show me what He loves and what He wants ME to love as well...it will most likely require sacrifice and a lot of work, but my mind was pricked with the thought, "Am I willing to pray anything?" "Am I willing to give my everything?" Even just typing those questions makes me feel a little uneasy...but really, it's kind of exciting at the same time because there's an adventure to live, if only I'd see it that way.
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