Craig Clouston

 

Trustworthy

September 30

Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us.

Isaiah 25:9

“Momma, can we feed the birds?” Nastya asked.

Glancing out the window, Lena saw there was a break in the rain, “Of course, my little one!”

So, bundled against the cold, they prepared a large bag of nuts and headed for the park. Knowing pigeons were the most trusting Nastya fed them first. And just as she suspected, the other birds kept their distance. As she continued to feed the pigeons, a few of the other birds tentatively ventured close enough to snatch this unexpected gift. Most kept their distance, however; perhaps due to some cruel dealings with humans in the past.

Nastya decided she wanted to feed the birds from her hand… So after the birds consumed the remnants on the ground she sat patiently holding the nuts in her outstretched hand. As before, nothing happened at first. The squawking magpies held their distance while jaybirds swooped, but had no intention of taking the nuts from Nastya’s hand. Still, Nastya was determined to know the sensation of earning the birds’ trust.

She noticed a Tit siting on a limb just above them. Raising her hand just enough to tempt the little bird, her patience paid off. It dropped from the limb, lighting on Nastya’s finger just long enough to take a nut! Several times over the next twenty minutes the beautiful little bird repeated its act of faith. The huge smile on Nastya’s face bore testimony to the joy she received from this intimate interaction.

†

This story is equally as sad as it exciting. Of the hundreds of birds present that day only one trusted enough to eat from Nastya’s hand.

The spiritual parallel is no less tragic. There are those of us who, for one reason or another, refuse to trust God; perhaps because of past hurts. Even though He was not the harbinger of our pain, we blame Him for not preventing the act, and we refuse to trust Him again.

Mercifully, God does not hold us responsible for our misguided blame. With outstretched hand, He waits for the day we realize that He is trustworthy, and reach back.

Prayer

“Papa, I want to receive the blessings You have in Your hand. Show me that I have nothing to fear from You. In Jesus’ Name, amen.”