All the birds are flying away. I really miss the birds when they leave for the winter. The forest is so silent … and still … … and silent.
Hubby and I were coming back from church this past Sunday, and as we drove down the hill and across the wide broad Sammamish valley, many multiple V-formations of birds were flying overhead. It was impressive to be quite honest, all the many different migratory groups heading off on their journeys.
About half of the V-formations were flying west. And why?!? Aren’t they supposed to be flying south??
Sunday afternoon hubby and I were heading out for a walk around our neighborhood, when we heard the loud noisy squawking of approaching birds. I stopped for a moment to gaze upwards. And sure enough, there went a somewhat-half-V-formation of migrating birds … headed north?!? And why??
There have been many other times I have been working out in the forest and seen loud, noisy squawking V-formations headed east. And why?? … I always wonder.
Recently I came across a really interesting piece about migrating birds, from my devotional book: Inspired Evidence, by Julie Von Vett & Bruce Malone. Check out these interesting facts …
* Birds navigate using landmarks such as rivers/mountains/seashores.
* Some birds use the “sun compass,” which requires an internal clock. The sun’s movement and the bird’s internal clock allow them to calculate their direction.
* Many birds migrate primarily at night when there is less wind and fewer predators. These birds use a “star compass.” If the birds migrate beyond the equator into another hemisphere, they need to know the stars in that hemisphere as well.
* What if it is cloudy? Birds seem to have the ability to sense and navigate by the Earth’s magnetic field. Birds have been found to have small amounts of magnetic crystals in their head, i.e. they have a built-in compass!
* Birds have been found to use polarized light, ultraviolet light, air pressure differences, odors, and low frequency sounds made by the wind and sea to aid their migration.
So back to our original thought … who am I to judge the birds flying west. Perhaps those particular groups will be navigating their journey south by using the coastline. And the coastline is west.
What about the birds flying east. Perhaps those migrating groups will be navigating their journey south by using the Cascade Mountain Range. And the mountains are east.
Or what about the birds flying north? Perhaps, considering how they were a straggled bunch, perhaps they were headed to the rendezvous point to meet up with the rest of their migratory group? You never know.
Sometimes in life we do this same type of judging when it comes to the people around us. We look at what this person over here is doing, and we think: “Why are they making that particular decision in their life?? Surely that can’t be the right direction in life for them to go.”
Or we look at that person over there, and we think: “That decision they just made is wrong. That is not the direction they should go.”
But when it comes down to it … we don’t really know.
Did you catch, in the facts above, that birds have the ability to sense and navigate by the Earth’s magnetic field because they have a built-in compass. In much the same way, if we love and follow Jesus Christ, then we too have the ability to sense and navigate through life by our own special “built-in compass” … the Holy Spirit.
* The Holy Spirit tells us which is the correct direction we need to go in our life.
* The Holy Spirit guides and directs us on our journey … to the intended destination God has for us.
* The Holy Spirit helps us make navigational course corrections as we journey throughout each new day.
Other people might look at us and think: “Why are you going that way?? I don’t think that is the right direction you should be going.” Or similarly, we ourselves might look at other people and think the same thing.
Check out this further piece of information from my devotional book, Inspired Evidence:
“The black poll warbler flies in the wrong direction when migrating! It starts its long journey by flying eastward, out over the Atlantic Ocean, before heading south to South America. Why not fly directly to South America?
“It somehow knows to fly toward Africa at the exact time needed to catch higher winds that aid in its journey south. The warbler then relaxes and flies to Brazil with a minimum amount of effort. Young warblers kept in captivity with no training from their parents follow the same unusual path. How do they know how to do this?
“Many other small songbirds from northeastern USA also fly over the Atlantic Ocean on their way to South America. Why don’t they take the land route?
“A narrow strip of Central America is the primary migration route for millions of raptors. These predator raptors need to fly on thermal air currents. The open ocean does not produce these needed thermals. So, by flying out over the Atlantic Ocean, songbirds are safe from these predators.”
So … … back to the thought we have been considering: In life, we look at the people around us and we don’t understand why they are making certain decisions, or going a certain direction in their life. Why are they going that way?? From our perspective, it doesn’t look to be the right direction.
But, if they love and follow Jesus Christ, then they have the Holy Spirit guiding and directing them. And the Holy Spirit might know something that we (or even they) don’t know.
The Holy Spirit might know of “higher winds with strong air currents out over that direction which will make the journey easier.”
The Holy Spirit might know of something out there which might be dangerous … such as the dangerous raptors which migrate on thermal air currents over the land route. The Holy Spirit might be taking them (of perhaps us in our own journey) in a direction that might seem to appear wrong … but is actually much safer.
God works differently in every person’s life. The Holy Spirit leads and guides each person uniquely and individually … based on God’s plan for their life. And it will probably not look the way we think it should.
There will often be times in life when we look at those around us and wonder: Why are they going that way??
And to be honest, there will often be times in our own life when we look at the direction the Holy Spirit is leading and guiding us and we think: Why am I going this way??
The Holy Spirit knows which way is best!
Follow the Holy Spirit’s lead and guidance in your own life. And when it comes to that other person of whom we wonder: Why are they going that way?? … the Holy Spirit is leading and guiding them too. Even if it doesn’t seem to make sense.
