Taking Wing

10/8/10

Ahhh, October and November – if you live in St. Louis, they are the two choice months of the year.  The nip in the air calls to you to get away from your work and come out and play!  What a treat to put a log on the fire again, and do some baking in the kitchen.

Missouri is well-known for its many wineries, and after church Sunday my husband and I set our sights for a long drive into wine country.  The one we chose was high on top of a bluff with a great view.  After eating and basking in the glow, we took a little walk and happened upon a pond with mallards and swans.  We noticed they were having a rather heated territorial conversation.  For a moment I felt sorry for them.  I thought, poor things – they are all stuck here together in this pond, whether they like it or not.

Then I remembered – birds are some of the freest creatures on earth.  They are not stuck anywhere.  They fly in and they fly out – they come and go according to the climate changes.  Once I even saw some geese fly down into a swimming pool belonging to my piano students.  To the kids’ delight, the geese touched down and then, as quickly as they arrived, they were gone.  What a sense of awe and wonder – the freedom birds have.

Is it really any different for us?  There’s a spot in Isaiah 11 which speaks of a time when God pours forth the blessing of peace throughout the world – the wolf and lamb lie down together.  Isaiah says that in that day we all live in freedom and in peace with another. Psalm 31:8 says, “And You have not given me over into the hand of the enemy; You have set my feet in a large place.” Our little ‘pond’ will surely seem a much larger place when we stop arguing with one another, when the peace of God reigns everywhere, and when we see the endless capacity God places within us.

Freedom from condemnation – even the condemnation of God – that’s what God’s Son has brought to us.  Why should any of us feel trapped?  Why should our heart feel crowded or pressured with limitations we place upon ourselves, and upon others?   Even if someone you know, perhaps in your congregation, has physical llimitations – if they have God’s gift of eternal life inside, those limitations are only temporary, and cannot confine or define them as a child of God. 

We, as worship leaders, can offer our best worship when we bask in the depth of His presence, and lift our songs from the depth of our heart and soul.

Let’s bask in Him, and soar to new heights!