Today I was listening to a BYU devotional by Kim B. Clark given on 9/29/2009 called “Are Ye Stripped of Pride?” You know how you can hear a whole talk and everything is good, but there is one particular thing that you seem to focus your thoughts on? (Yep, here I go on one of my crazy pondering moments.) For me with this talk, I kept thinking of one thing that he said about Satan. He said that we need to ignore Satan’s call to enmity toward God because he is calling. (Sorry I don’t have the exact quote. I couldn’t find a written file, only audio.)Satan’s call really does seem to be loud and prevalent. In contrast, the Holy Ghost’s call may be quiet and drowned out in the world. I actually don’t know anything about bird calls, but I started thinking of our Heavenly Father’s call to us like a parent to his or her baby birds. While Satan is trying to trick us to listen to his call and overpower the voice of our Father, He is still calling us with His perfect love and patience.
So I wondered why birds call and decided to look it up online. On the very first search result, I found such a perfect answer. According to Cornell Lab of Orinthology , there are 4 reasons they call. You won’t believe how perfectly they fit my crazy analogy.
1. “I'm here, where are you?” Our Heavenly Father does not change. We will always know where to find him and what we must do to return to Him. Sometimes when He calls us, He is alerting us that we may be going off the path where we belong or helping us to feel His presence and have confidence that we are doing what He wants us to be doing. I have heard this type of call many times and am so grateful for them.
2. “Follow me” Yes, it actually says that. A more experienced, mature bird will call to the other less experienced birds so that they may follow him while traveling to a new location or in the dark. They use the calls as a guide. Of course, Heavenly Father’s call is our ultimate guide through this life full of darkness and unknown. We can know that we will be safe if we just listen for His call and follow Him.
3. “Predator alert!” Satan is the master deceiver and will lie and trick us into thinking that good is evil and evil is good. He will make it seem that the world’s temporary happiness is the only joy we need. Our Father in Heaven will alert us to Satan’s lies if only we listen and are following Him.
The fourth reason birds call is actually a baby bird (us) calling to his parent. “I'm hungry—feed me!” We all make that call many times throughout our lives. Our hunger may not always be physical hunger. “I’m lonely, stay with me.” “I’m searching for truth, teach me.” “I want to do what is right, guide me.” Our Father is always listening and always there for us. We may not always hear the calls immediately responding, but He does not leave us. He just waits for the right time to call back to us.
Do you mind if I copy and paste this post in a"potential talk material" file? Great analogies
ReplyDeleteValerie, You always touch my heart with they way you put things plainly - so that I understand the meaning in a clear way. I am sure you are just an awesome teacher. I love it!
ReplyDeleteToday while I was on the phone with my mother (who is trying to become active in the church again and struggling) I told her about the analogy of the court room. We never think we are good enough or let go of the terrible sins we made. It is a sorrowful thing when we sin, but it's such a great thing to know that we can be forgiven if we repent - that our sins are washed away by his atoning sacrifice.
It's been wonderful following you - you are awesome!
Of course you can copy it, Pam, if you think it's worth it. It was just some silly thoughts I had and scribbled down into my blog before I even had a chance to really think much about it.
ReplyDeleteSondra, thanks so much for coming back to read again and again and even commenting! I hope that your mother is able to feel our Savior's love and return. Like your story today, it is so much easier to stay warm and "on fire" when you aren't trying to do it alone.
Great analogy, Valerie. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDelete