The Feeding

It was just a short video but it captured my attention.
It was a video of a mother bird feeding her babies.
I watched the persistence of the mother bird, flying to and fro.
Going somewhere off camera to get more food for the ones in her care.

Before I could even see her in the frame, I knew she was coming.
The five little birds straightened themselves up in the nest.
They arched their neck and opened their mouths so incredibly wide.
The whole scene made me giggle.

The baby birds reminded me of the Byers collectible carolers you see at Christmas time.
The carolers singing with their mouths wide open.
Their mouths rounded in such a way they appear to make the letter “o.”
I smiled at the thought.

The sound was purposely muted on the video.
I can only imagine the ruckus.
The mother bird brought back the worm or the bug and fed her babies from her mouth.
She did not feed them in order but flew in a seemingly random path from one to another.

As she flew off to gather more food, the baby birds closed their mouths.
When she approached they arched their necks and opened their mouths wide to receive.
Tirelessly, she went to her food source.
Persistently, she brought back nourishment for her babies.

There was something about this scene I related to on a deeper level.
The baby birds were ravenously hungry.
They anticipated their mother’s arrival.
They opened wide their mouths to receive.

I would hope that the feeding time had a beginning and an end.
Otherwise, the mother bird would be flying back and forth all day long.
Flying and feeding without stopping for any nourishment of her own.
Impossible, thinking of the demands of the task before her.

You must speak My words to them, whether they listen of fail to listen, for they are rebellious. But you, Son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you. Then I looked, and saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, which He unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe. And He said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and He gave me the scroll to eat. Then He said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it. So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth. He then said to me, “Son of man, go now to the house of Israel and speak My words to them. You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and difficult language, but to the house of Israel – not to many peoples of obscure speech and difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel is not willing to listen to you because they are not willing to listen to Me…(Exekiel 2:7-3:7)

The prophet Ezekiel is describing a feeding.
Much like the mother bird feeding her babies, God feeds us with His Word.
Oh, to be as eager as the baby birds to receive it.
Oh, to arch our neck and open wide our mouths so He can give us nourishment.

God never tires.
God’s Word does not return void.
It fills and nourishes and does all He desires it to do.
But it must be received, eaten, swallowed, and digested if we are to grow.

So many of us feed others without being fed ourselves.
That cannot be.
The mother bird had to have food in her mouth in order to feed her babies.
She could not have come to them empty.

Yet many of us do just that.
We are busy with the work of the church, the work of the kingdom, yet we run on empty.
We do not stop and take the time to eat so that we will be nourished and strong for others.
We have to feed on the Word of God first before we can begin to feed those in our care.

How eager are we to eat the meat of God’s Word?
Do we open wide our mouths for Him to feed us?
Do we eagerly anticipate His presence when we open His Word?
Do we arch our necks desiring more of His food?

God’s supply never runs dry.
Are we hungry enough to receive it?
Or are we feasting on junk food, so that when real nourishment comes, we are stuffed?
Stuffed with sugar and fat and the empty calories of the world.

Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. (Psalm 81:10)
Close your mouth to the junk food of this world and be hungry for the Word of God.
God’s Word is the only thing that truly nourishes.
God’s Word is the only thing that fills our hungry souls.

Open your mouth.
Let God feed you with His Word.
Be ravenously hungry for Truth.
Once you taste the real thing, you will never go back to junk food ever again.

 

2 responses to “The Feeding”

1. Excellent post. It is so important for small group leaders, SS teachers, nursery workers, deacons and elders to stay in the Word. Only then can they do the work God has called them to do.

   Reply

   • You are absolutely right, Al.
     We need to be fed before we can feed others.
     Gina

     Reply