Jesus spoke the following
to a crowd suffering from anxiety attacks: ‘…Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not
tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far
more to Him than birds.” (Matthew
6:25-26 MSG)
You say, ‘Yeah, but what
can I learn from looking at a bunch of birds?’ Well, let’s see:
ONE: GEESE FLY UNITED: They don’t fly
separately, in random style, because no goose alone can go that distance. They’re
designed to fly in their characteristic ‘V’ formation. When a bird flaps its
wings the air movement created provides an uplift, easing the workload of the
bird behind it. Together, their flight range increases about 71 percent. Even
the youngest, weakest and oldest geese can make the trip. They accomplish
together what they could never accomplish separately. The first Scripture the
birds teach us is (Hebrews
10:25 NIV): ‘Let us not give up
meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one
another…‘ it means, ‘Stay in fellowship with one another, and
enjoy the uplift it provides.‘ You’re
not called to fly solo! ‘The
eye cannot say to the hand, “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the
feet, “I don’t need you!”‘ (1
Corinthians 12:21 NIV). Birds
teach us how to work together and support one another, doing what is always in
the best interest of one another. Now, occasionally a goose strays off on its
own, but look what happens, it soon becomes exhausted, loses altitude and
ultimately pulls wearily back into the formation. LET THE GEESE TEACH US HOW TO
WORK TOGETHER AND STAY TOGETHER!
TWO: EVERY FORMATION HAS
TO HAVE A ‘POINT GOOSE’ OUT FRONT WHO LEADS AND SETS THE PACE FOR THE OTHERS: It’s a tough
position because the point goose cuts the headwinds, meets the changing weather
conditions, and is first to feel the rain in his face, the snow in his eyes and
the ice on his wings. He keeps the formation on target whatever the situation
or circumstance. It’s hard, exhausting and lonely at times because there’s
nobody ahead of him to be the wind beneath his wings. The formation depends on
him to persevere, stay on track and get the skein safely to its destination.
Every church has its point goose: The Pastor. Each department has its point
geese: youth, finance, evangelism, care ministries, and so on. They lead, set
the pace and give direction to those who follow. There are always two common
roles in the church: the under-employed and the over-functioning. Point
ministries are the latter, so they tend to burn out frequently. However, just
before the point goose is exhausted, a space opens in the formation and he
slips back into it while another bird replaces him, seamlessly becoming the
next point goose. Standing in for each other preserves the life of the
formation. This is what Paul meant by: ‘from whom the whole body,
fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper
working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building
up of itself in love.‘ (Ephesians
4:16 NASB). Don’t be content to
be a consumer; instead, be a producer! A great church isn’t about paid staff;
rather, it’s about volunteers willing to stand in whenever needed. LET THE
GEESE TEACH US HOW TO LEAD, FOLLOW AND FILL IN!
THIRD: IN THE WORLD OF
GEESE, THE AGED, VERY YOUNG, AND INFIRM ARE KEPT PROTECTED IN THE REAR OF THE
FORMATION:
But they
aren’t isolated, discounted or considered useless; in fact they fulfill a vital
role. They become the ‘honking section’ and cheer for the leaders. Inevitably,
bad weather threatens the mission. The going gets tough and the tough are
struggling. From the rear of the formation a lone honk sounds, initiating a
geese chorus honking encouragement to the point goose. Paul understood this:
“Therefore encourage (admonish,
exhort) one another and edify (strengthen and build up) one another, just as
you are doing.” (1
Thessalonians 5:11 AMP). He
knew we needed a ‘honking section’ supporting us with uplifting words and
prayer. We need those who say, ‘We are behind you. We’ve got your back
covered!’ “And as for you,
brethren, do not become weary or lose heart in doing right [but continue in
well-doing without weakening].” (2
Thessalonians 3:13 AMP). Many a
servant of Christ has crossed their deepest valley on a wing, a prayer and a
honk from some old-scarred, battle-hardened, straggle-feathered, half-bald
honker of encouragement who was too stubborn to let a brother or sister quit on
their watch! Occasionally, a strident, out-of-tune goose complains loudly and
irritatingly. But within moments, the honking section kicks in, drowning out
the grumbler, restoring order and unity. The church’s problem isn’t too many
people speaking negatively, it’s too few speaking positively! When someone
cries, ‘defeat’, honk back, ‘victory’ When they cry, ‘fear’, honk back,
‘faith’. A few words of encouragement can overpower a storm of complaints. So
join the honking section and be known as a Barnabas, whose name means ‘Son of
Encouragement‘ (Acts 4:36 NIV).
LET THE GEESE TEACH US HOW TO
ENCOURAGE AND PROTECT ONE ANOTHER!
FOURTH: WITH GEESE, THEIR
RELATIONSHIP IS ‘TILL DEATH DO US PART’: They take it seriously. They’re fully committed. At
the age of three years, a goose selects a mate for itself. Loyal bird as it is,
a goose is known to live with its mate for a long part of its life. Even after
the death of any one from the couple, the other one would live several years,
alone, without engaging with a new partner. And many a times, they remain
single for the rest of their life. There are few birds which do not split from
their family after breeding season, geese are one of them (if only we would
remember this in regards to marriage and family). When the ravages of time or
circumstances make it impossible for a bird to continue the trip and it begins
to lose altitude or fails to keep abreast of the formation, the gaggle provides
it with comfort, nurture and protection. Two strong geese leave the formation,
flying with the ‘patient’ safely between them, find a sheltered location with
food and water and make a home for the needy bird. They’ll stay with their ward
until it either recovers or dies, before joining another formation. For them,
everything goes ‘on hold’ to care for another bird! What an example of
Christ-like relationship and self-sacrificing love. ‘…God has combined the members of the body
and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should
be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for
each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is
honored, every part rejoices with it.‘ (1 Corinthians 12:24-26 NIV). In today’s culture we discount and marginalize the needy, including
those no longer functioning as they once did. But God demands that we ‘have equal concern for each other‘, especially with those suffering. If a gaggle
of birds can do it, surely God’s family ought to do it too. ‘Look at the birds in the sky!’ Jesus
directs. If they can do it for each other, ‘… Aren’t you worth more than birds?‘
(Matthew 6:26 CEV). One of the two greatest commandments (not
suggestions) Christ gave us is, ‘…Love
others as well as you love yourself. There is no other commandment that ranks
with these.” (Mark 12:31 MSG).
When word circulates that we love each
other in this way, they’ll beat down the doors of our church to get in! LET THE
GEESE TEACH US HOW TO KEEP OUR VOWS TO ONE ANOTHER IN LOVE, AND TO REMAIN IN
COVENANT WITH ONE ANOTHER. ‘TILL DEATH DO US PART’ ISN’T JUST FOR MARRIAGE!
JESUS KEPT HIS VOW TO US AND REMAINED IN COVENANT WITH US, BEFORE AND AFTER
DEATH!
FIFTH: LOST AND STRAYING
GEESE ARE ALWAYS WELCOMED INTO THE FORMATION: It’s not an exclusive club for
the elite. Geese separated from other formations, isolated by weather, accident
or infirmity, are given full family status. The formation will alter its plans,
reschedule its arrival time and inconvenience itself to accommodate any
strangers seeking its acceptance. Many newcomers arrive dirty, bedraggled and ill-fed.
However, they’re never turned away. In the same way, God’s church isn’t a
museum for masterpieces – it’s a hospital for those who have been hurt by life,
even self-inflicted hurt. Jesus said, ‘Come to me, ALL of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I
will give you rest.‘ (Matthew
11:28 NLT). “ALL” are accepted! He also says: ‘I have other sheep that are not of this
sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there
shall be one flock and one shepherd.‘ (John 10:16 NIV). Christ
has no higher agenda than to recruit, save and adopt the stranger into His
flock. You say, ‘But they’re not my kind of people; they don’t look, talk or
smell like me!’ So what? We don’t get to choose our biological or spiritual
siblings; God does. If they rub us like sandpaper they’re only helping rub off
rough edges and polish us up. Want to see the material God builds the church
with? Prepare yourself for a shock. ‘Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of
God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators… idolaters… adulterers…
homosexuals… sodomites, thieves… covetous… drunkards… revilers…
extortioners…AND SUCH WERE SOME OF YOU. BUT YOU WERE SANCTIFIED, BUT YOU WERE
JUSTIFIED IN THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS AND BY THE SPIRIT OF OUR GOD‘ (1 Corinthians 6:9-11 NKJV). We were taken into the formation we were
washed, sanctified, justified and given full family status! How dare we not
extend the same grace and mercy to others! LET THE GEESE TEACH US HOW TO ACCEPT “ALL” INTO THE FOLD AND FAMILY!
SIXTH: THEY LIVE TOGETHER AND BRING NEW GOSLING
EVERY YEAR: Both of the parent geese take part in upbringing of the goslings (baby geese) which is one of the
reasons for high life expectancy in young ones. Geese produce a new generation
every year, wouldn’t it be amazing if the church did the same? “Jesus came to them and said: I have been
given all authority in heaven and on earth! Go to the people
of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to do
everything I have told you. I will be with you always, even until the end of
the world.” (Matthew 28:18-20 CEV); “But to as many as did receive and welcome
Him, He gave the right [the authority, the privilege] to become children of
God, that is, to those who believe in (adhere to, trust in, and rely on) His name”
(John 1:12 AMP) Geese teach us the importance of consistent producing. We
should not have year after year with the same people, with no new faces filling
the sanctuary. LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO DO WHAT GOD COMMANDED US TO DO…GO MAKE
DISCIPLES!
SEVENTH: THE MALE GEESE ARE EXTREMELY
OVER-PROTECTIVE OF THE FEMALE GEESE: The male community of geese display a
caring and protective nature towards their female counterparts and will even
stand between danger and her. 1
Timothy 5:2 reads, “…Reverently honor an older woman as you would your mother,
and the younger women as sisters.” (MSG). In a day when words like “gentlemen” and “chivalry” are alarmingly becoming
extinct, men of God, it should
not be so among you. Male geese care for and protect the female geese. Now,
does that mean you go around beating up people every time they say something
cross to her? Absolutely not. But as men, you should always be a protective
hedge to your sisters (and sisters in
Christ). Protect them from wolves in sheep’s clothing; protect them from
being belittled, overlooked, and bypassed due to their gender. Support your
sisters, make them safe and secure and let the world know that you will stand
between her and danger if need be. Think about it, if geese have enough sense
to do this, what excuse can an intelligent man have for not doing it? LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO CARE FOR, GUARD
AND PROTECT THE WOMEN IN OUR FAMILY (BOTH NATURAL AND SPIRITUAL).
EIGHTH: THE FEMALE GOOSE PRODUCES, THE MALE GOOSE
PROTECTS: As a part of the reproduction cycle, the female goose lays an egg
each day to reach the number to 5 eggs. Once all of the eggs are laid off, she
incubates eggs in her nest for 30 days. When she goes far from the eggs, she
covers them with sticks to make them feel cozy and protected. Meanwhile, the
male parent goose keeps the nest protected from a distance so that predators
don’t get a hint of the nest and eggs. As parents, both natural and spiritual, it’s vital that we produce and
protect. Geese have enough sense to produce gosling (children) and then to cover and protect them until they’re
prepared to go it on their own. As natural and spiritual parents, we need to
follow their example. We are called to develop/train/produce
disciples/followers for Christ (as
well as natural children to carry on the family legacy), and at the same
time to protect them. For some reason, in this day and age, children turn 18
and they’re considered “grown”
(I beg to differ). In the same
way, once someone comes to Christ, we disciple them (briefly) then put them on an auxiliary and move on to the next “to-do” on the agenda, because we
consider them "grown".
Geese take the time to produce seed, but also to water, feed, nurture, protect,
shield, and cover them. How is it possible that we don’t do the same? TODAY, LET US ALLOW THE GEESE TO TEACH US TO
BE PATIENT WITH OUR NATURAL AND SPIRITUAL CHILDREN. GIVE THEM TIME TO SIT AND
BE STILL, TO LEARN, TO GROW, TO DEVELOP, TO BE PREPARED, TO BE GROOMED. DON’T
RUSH THEM PREMATURELY.
NINTH: GEESE ARE GREAT COMMUNICATORS: They use
approximately 10 different sounds to communicate, depending on the situation
confronting them. Geese have enough sense to know what to communicate, when to
communicate and how. Yet, we the intelligent human beings that we are, get this
wrong on every possible level. Now, I don’t believe we should walk around with
multiple personalities depending on who we’re talking to at the moment. But I
do believe that we need to learn to communicate better. Some people can take an
‘in your face method’, while
others need more of a ‘can we talk
privately to the side?’ Truth is, some of us have so much great wisdom
to be shared, however, because
we don’t choose our words wisely, the wisdom falls on deaf ears. It’s not
always what you say, but more likely how you say it that gets you heard or
ignored. If geese possess the wisdom to change up their communication depending
on the circumstances, shouldn’t we possess the same? LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO USE APPROPRIATE
COMMUNICATION.
TENTH: THE FEMALE GOOSE ALWAYS BUILDS THE NEST: Women, Wives, Mothers, Sisters, Aunties,
God-Mommy’s etc…We play a vital role in the home! For the female goose, she literally builds the nest from sticks
and branches, but she also includes for comfort, the feathers from her own body. Now that’s sacrifice! And that’s
exactly what it takes to build a home. And that goes for both our natural and
spiritual homes as well. We need to be the generous givers and nurturers, that
we were designed to be both in our homes and in the church. We have children
all around our lives, and it’s important that we deposit in them daily. Build
them up daily. Encourage them, strengthen them, guide them, pray for them,
point them in the right direction, all of this is building a house, building a
home and building a generation that will carry on a lasting legacy. LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO BUILD OUR
CHILDREN, OUR LOVED ONES, OUR HOMES AND THE HOUSE OF GOD DAILY.
ELEVENTH: THERE ARE AROUND 30 SPECIES OF GEESE IN
THE WORLD: And yet none of them feels the need to attempt to compare, compete or clone. Wish this
was the mentality of the church. People of God, we are all different and that
is a good thing. We all bring a different perspective to the team and to the
whole of the Body. Let’s not continue the discord of “my way or the highway”. Be open to the varying views of others.
And by all means if the church is to grow it will have to come in contact with
other people and differing views (none
however, that cause us to stray from our faith principles). But be
prepared, because 'other' can
mean piercings; tattoos; tri-colored hair; unwed mothers; criminal backgrounds;
homeless; jobless; divorced etc…the church is to be multi-cultural and
multi-faceted, not one-dimensional. We don't service the elite, we service
everybody! We don’t need clones, copies, duplicates, and recyclables! There are
30 species of geese, meaning diversity is a good thing. LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT, LIKE REFUSING TO BE
THE SAME.
TWELFTH: GEESE HAVE A STRONG URGE TO RETURN TO THEIR
PLACE OF BIRTH: Having good instinct for places, geese return to their general
area of living where they lived most after their birth. It has even been
observed that geese fly 2,000-3,000 miles to return to the exact place of their
dwelling to mate and nest. Foundation
is vital to anything you build. And that includes our families and
churches. Geese return to their foundation. Which reminds me of many “church kids” who get older and stray.
Some of them return and some never do. It’s
important from birth to set a firm foundation of faith in our children, that
even when they stray and mess up, something on the inside (as the old song
goes) will start back to working. Something will remind them of who they
are and Whose they are, and they will return back on the road of
reconciliation. But that’s difficult
to do if they never receive a road map in the first place. Yes, we need
to teach our children that God loves them, protects them, sees and hears them.
But we must also avoid assuming that our “little angels” will never get into any “devilment”. They are
saved, not perfect. And they battle with seduction and temptation just
like the next kid, and many of them fall prey. We need to teach them both how
to avoid the trap, and also when they get trapped there’s always a way of
escape out of it. Proverbs 22:6,
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not
depart from it.” “Teach children how they should live, and they will remember
it all their life.” (GNT); “Point your kids in the right direction—when they’re
old they won’t be lost.” (MSG) LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO LAY A FIRM FOUNDATION
OF FAITH, SO EVEN WHEN OUR CHILDREN STUMBLE AND FALL ON THE WRONG PATH, THEIR KNEES
WILL RECALL THE PRAYER TO GET THEM BACK UP AND ON THE RIGHT TRACK AGAIN.
THIRTEENTH: THE OLD AND
YOUNG GO THROUGH CHANGES TOGETHER: While the gosling (young geese) are Maturing
(gaining), the adult geese are Molting (losing). During the maturing time for
the goslings, the adult geese do not leave the area. The maturing period of the
goslings overlaps with the molting season for the adults. Molting season runs
from early June to late July. Adult geese lose wing feathers during this time
and are unable to fly. Geese can fly again approximately 6 weeks after molting.
The key? Maturing for the Young and Molting for the Older Happen at the Same
Time. We need to learn to embrace change, transition, development and growth,
for all ages in our families as well as our churches. The young are gaining,
while the older are losing. The young are getting stronger while the older are
weakening. However, this will not be a problem if it’s understood, acknowledged
and embraced by both parties. Which requires a lot of patience and love. The
young should never become prideful and the older should never feel discarded or
threatened. LET THE GEESE TEACH US TO EMBRACE ONE ANOTHER AS WE ALL CHANGE IN
DIFFERENT WAYS THAT WILL MAKE US AS A WHOLE BETTER.
Who knew Birds could be
one of the Best Bible Study Teachers?! Hope You Learned as Much as I Did!
