Apr
17
2012
A Little Encouragement
Posted in Daily Living 6 Comments
I heard them before I saw them.
Geese flying in the V formation, honking loudly.
Their honking broke the quiet of my morning walk.
My prayer time is becoming more what God intends, and less what I had in mind when I set out.
Some mornings, it is simply observing…like this morning.
I am finding that the simplest thing has His signature all over it.
I tried to look up and watch the geese as I walked.
Finding that a difficult task, I stopped.
I’m so glad I did.
I watched for quite some time.
I watched the geese fly into a perfect V formation.
The leader was at the front.
All the geese were honking.
After a while the leader went to the back and another came forward.
It seemed as if there was a lot of rotation going on.
Yet they were still flying in the ever present V.
I was curious as to why they fly like that and learned so much after I read about it.
Each bird flies slightly above the bird in front so there is less wind resistance.
They can fly longer distances with less effort.
The birds actually benefit individually while working together as a group.
The V formation actually helps them communicate with each other.
It allows them to see each other as they fly.
The honking encourages the other geese to keep flying.
If one is hurt or sick, two other geese will follow him down to protect him.
We have much to learn from the geese.
We go about our days with much resistance.
We need to work together to lighten the load.
We will go much further if we work together…honking encouragement as we go.
We need to be faithful and stay with others in good times and bad times.
Before I headed for home, I saw two other birds claiming their territory.
They flew around angrily, hitting each other, flying low to the ground.
I could almost reach out and touch them.
They were unproductive.
Whatever territory they were guarding was left unattended while they fought.
I was so thankful that God allowed me to see both situations this morning.
Am I more of an encourager, like the geese?
Am I more like the other birds, fighting for territory?
God gave me an object lesson…and I saw the better way.
There are many “one another” verses in God’s Word.
It would benefit us to know them and hide them in our heart.
But more than know them…how much better to live them!
How much more productive we would be if we stopped worrying about our own position and spent more time encouraging one another as we journeyed together.
A little honking goes a long way.
I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong- that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. (Romans 1:11,12)
Hello Gina,
I’m Jeff’s sister, Karen. He sent your blog out to his family yesterday, and I’m glad he did. I love the way you write..so personal and inspiring.
I was also inspired to give some structure to my own writing. Erin did a great job…
blessings
Karen
Hi Karen,
Thank you for your sweet words.
It was so nice to meet you at Katelin’s wedding, almost a year ago.
I am glad you are going to write more yourself.
I will pass on your encouragement to Erin as well.
Gina
YOU are such an encouragement! Thank you!
Janna
Janna,
What a blessing you are to me!
Gina
Hi Gina!
I’ve been wanting to write to you since your very first post to this blog and while I know that your topic today was never intended to acquire personal encouragement, I want to do just that, to tell you that God’s gift in you is strong and that His words through you are helping others to grow closer to His greatness and faithfulness. Thank you for listening and for acting on God’s urging to share this wonderful gift. I am blessed to be a follower…
Best wishes to you and your family,
Jeff
Jeff,
How you blessed me this morning!
Thank you for your encouragement.
You, and your family, have been such a gift to our family through the years.
Many wonderful memories together as our children grew…and God willing, many more memories to come.
Please pray that God will continue to give me stories, so that others may know the Lord we love and serve.
Gina