Psalm 104:12 - Fledglings Leaving the Safety of the Nest

Psalm 104:12 “The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches.”

Outside my front door, there is a nest of a family of robins. The chicks recently hatched, but now its been long enough that they are fledglings and just learning to spread their wings and fly.  These baby chicks need to learn to fend for themselves, or at least underneath the oversight of their parents. Each awkward attempt at flight is better than the one before, and each time they don't quite make it air born, their supervising parent makes sure its safe for them to try again.

In our daily walk with the Lord, we too are like those fledglings. Our Lord has been carefully feeding us and helping us, and now we “strike out on our own” under His supervision. We have His word to guide us and His hands to help us, but we are facing what seems to be a big and cruel world ahead of us, but that doesn't matter because its only so big and so cruel as long as we aren't out in it being His ambassadors.  But before we can change the world, we need to get out of the nest. We need to have that push to get us to spread our wings and fly that we might be true followers of Christ, following Him where He might lead rather than waiting for Him to bring us our next meal in the safety of the nest, surrounded by all the other flightless chicks too weak, too scared, or too young to leave and explore and make the world our own.

When we do start flying, remember we are fledglings. Our flights are awkward and short in the grand scheme of things, but to us, they are long and drawn out. We view ourselves as covering new territory and seeing wonderful new things, yet we have only moved from branch to branch. We are still fledglings. We aren't always successful with each flight either, and our Lord must come and help us get back to the nest or another point where we can leap and try again to soar.  Just because we do not succeed the first, second, third, 39th try does not mean that we wont on the 40th. Just because we fall does not mean that we won't be able to get up and try again. Each time we fall, each time we don't quite make it to the next branch, Christ is there to help us and to aid us to learn from what we did wrong.

Just because we are being pushed out of the nest and having to learning to fly, just because we are leaving the safety of the nest does not mean that we are alone. It does not mean that we do not have help. It does not mean that we are no longer safe, it means that Christ wants to expand our world beyond the safety of our comfortable bubble. It means He wants us to have more than this tiny cramped nest we have now. It means we have to spread our wings and learn to love the world and all its varied inhabitants like He does.

This week, lets remember that Christ is trying to get us out of where we are most comfortable and to show us His world. Lets make the effort to say “Yes, Lord” when He calls us to something that seems difficult, for its His way of helping us to grow. This week, lets spread our wings a little wider and when we make it to the next branch, we will find ourselves singing His praises a little louder and with more conviction.

Nothing between my soul and my Savior,
Naught of this world's delusive dream;
I have renounced all sinful pleasure;
Jesus is mine, there's nothing between.

Nothing between my soul and my Savior,
So that His blessed face may be seen;
Nothing preventing the least of his favor;
Keep the way clear! let nothing between.
                                ^{Charles Albert Tindley, 1905.}