A little birdie

An interesting thing happend on Monday. As I arrived at the church I noticed something rather conspicuous. The walkway leading up to the upper office doors was covered with a brilliant white blanket of freshly frozen and fallen water crystals called snow. Now, being the gentleman that I am (your pastor should be a gentleman...I think), I was eager to find a shovel and quickly rid the walkway of the dangerous precipitation lest someone fall and harm their posterior. Unfortunately there was no shovel to be found in the upper lobby so I traveled down the stairs to the storage room behind the kitchen. That is when I noticed it, there was a small and frightened sparrow locked in the dark storage room. 

The little winged creature was flying around and chirping as it desperately tried to avoid me and find some form of safety and freedom. So I kind of chuckled to myself and reached for the shovel (not to bludgeon the sparrow but to get rid of the snow). I had things to do. You know, I am an important individual with lots of important things to accomplish. However, as I reached for the shovel an overwhelming sense of compassion hit me. So I grabbed a lid from off of a storage tote and opened the storage room door and proceeded to herd the little bird to safety in the lobby where I could then usher him to the doors leading outside. The little sparrow obliged my request and flew into the lobby where he frantically tried to escape by bouncing off all of the ceiling lights that I had turned on. He was flying to every artificial form of safety he could find. As I went to the doors and opened them he landed on our Christmas tree in the lobby and had to be encouraged to release from the fake tree to find real freedom.

As the sparrow flew out the open doors (after bouncing off the window a few times) you could almost see his delight. He opened his wings and flew into freedom.

John 8:36 says this, "So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed." It was a little later in the day as I was in prayer that the Lord brought the earlier events back to my mind. I was in the lobby and staring at our couches that many people sit on after service or during the week as they await benevolent help and it was as though the Lord was whispering to me, "You know, Cory, people are just like that little bird. They simply need someone to care enough to lead them to freedom and true freedom is found in Me." 

People are like that little bird. They are frantically trying to find freedom in the most artificial of places. They cry out (sometimes with words, sometimes with actions) and really need someone to care enough to put down their busyness and lead them to Jesus. The apostle Paul said, "How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?" in Romans chapter 10. This is the call of discipleship. It is our command, our great commission and it should be our joy.

So, who will you grab by the hand today and walk with them as you preach the good news in word and deed, leading them to freedom in Jesus? I pray that you take the time. A little birdie told me it is worth it.

-Cory