Bird-feeders, Word-feeders.

Job 12:7 ‘But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds of the air, and they will tell you;’

We have a bird feeder in the back garden and I love to sit in the mornings with a cup of tea and watch the birds come and feed there. Some days there might be 30+ birds gathered to feed.

One of the mornings lately I was watching these birds and the Holy Spirit began to teach me something through them.

I saw such a picture of the Christian and their longing to be fed from the word of God.

There are three types of birds that come into our garden to feed, corresponding to three types of Christian and their approach to the word of God.

1. There are those birds that come right into the feeder and feed long and hard until they are satisfied. These birds are willing to push through the crowds, ignore all the distractions and come with boldness to be fed. They are not put off by the many other birds around and do not give way until they have had their fill. Their tenacity is amazing. Also I noticed the same birds returning again and again and being nourished there, they are the healthiest and most robust birds in the garden. These birds are also willing to persist even in the face of danger. We have a stray cat that has taken up residence in our garden, as if it is his territory. He knows that the birds will return there to be fed and he is always lurking nearby, slyly trying to pick off one or two of them. These birds know that he is there, they are aware of his tricks and yet they do not stay away because they know the source of life is in that place. They have also been blessed with a means of escape far better than the enemy’s.

 I began to think of those Christians who approach the word of God with boldness and a healthy desire to get stuck into the word and be fed. They know, like the birds, that there is nourishment there and by it they will grow and become spiritually healthy. These Christians are continually found in the word and their growth and spiritual health is visible to all around them. They have understanding of deeper things and receive enough even to feed others.  They too, like the birds, are aware of the enemy and his scheming to pick them off, however they press on knowing that they have a means to escape which he is powerless against.

2. The second type of bird is those that come and dance around the garden a little distance away from the feeder itself. They only come so far and then they wait for the little morsels that drop down while the other birds are feeding. They are not persistent enough to push through the others and willingly give up their place as soon as any distraction comes along. When the ever-present enemy shows his feline face, they distance themselves even further and barely receive even a scrap of food at that distance. They are the funniest creatures to watch as they make a great show of wanting to be fed but never actually feed from the source. They just wait for the cast-offs from the other birds. As a result I noticed that they are not as healthy as the birds who feed from the feeder.

Of course this called to mind those Christians who only come a certain distance towards exploring the word of God. When they find that there is effort involved to feed from the source, they retreat a little way and are content to feed on the morsels that others share. I’m particularly reminded of those who will come to church or a conference to hear what the preacher has to share form his/her study of the word but never go to the source themselves to be fed. These Christians are always waiting for someone else to speak words of nourishment to them and as a consequence are neither fully nourished nor fully healthy. The slightest glimpse of the enemy causes them to draw back even further and feed even less. Theirs is a limited understanding and produces limited growth. They are also never fully satisfied.

3. The third type of bird, then, is those who perch on the fence or at the other end of the garden mournfully looking on while the others feed and dance around. These birds baffle me altogether. The food is there, there is even some strewn all over the ground and yet they refuse to approach. They look all round them, nervously awaiting some calamity, and often dart away at the slightest sound or shadow. Their fear of the cat knows no bounds and they flit away at the threat of him raising his furry head. They never seem to pluck up enough desire to even try to feed and are pitifully thin and undernourished. I often wonder how they survive and how they bring anything of worth back to their chicks.

It is an extremely sad fact that there are Christians who also live like this. They have no understanding of the word and receive so little from the source that their growth and nourishment is prematurely halted. Some Christians live like this for years, though I don’t know how they survive. The food is there, the strength is available to them but they never lay hold of it, or never even try. They look dolefully on at those who feed from the source as if those birds know something secret that is unreachable for them. They are blown about by every threat of calamity or every hint of the enemy’s presence and flit to and fro for years at a time, never really settling in anywhere and feeding themselves on the word. It is a pitiful thing to see these Christians but more often than not they don’t stay around long enough for anyone to help them.

We read in Deut 8:3 that ‘man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.’

The word of the Lord is our food. By it we are nourished and strengthened, our faith is increased and our hearts encouraged.

Matthew 6:26 also tells us: ‘Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?’

If we, as the children of God, are more valuable than the birds, how much more will our heavenly Father feed us? He wants to feed and sustain His children; He has given us His Spirit and His Word. Will we approach with boldness and be fed to all the fullness of God? Will we feed off the leftovers of others who have been nourished to satisfaction, and always have a lack because we did not receive it ourselves from the source? Or will we never come, never grow and never know fulfillment, being tossed about like the waves?

I know what I choose - Jer 15:16 ‘Your words were found, and I ate them,
And Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart’