Joy and Laughter in Our Creation; Job 39

May the mumbling commence!

Each of us has our strengths and weaknesses.  If we listen to the Apostle Paul, we would realize that it is most often through our weaknesses that God does His greatest works.  And the Bible often compares us to sheep, incredibly stupid and dirty creatures that need constant attention.  Even so, there are many things that a sheep has to offer its shepherd. 

Yes, each of us has our strengths and weaknesses.  In the last several of chapters in Job, the Lord speaks.  God uses an example that most of us would not even think about – ostriches.  Read the word of the Lord from chapter thirty-nine of Job:

            The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully,

                        but they cannot compare with the pinions and feathers of the stork. 

            She lays her eggs on the ground

                        and lets them warm in the sand, 

            unmindful that a foot may crush them,

                        that some wild animal may trample them. 

            She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers;

                        she cares not that her labor was in vain, 

            for God did not endow her with wisdom

                        or give her a share of good sense. 

            Yet when she spreads her feathers to run,

                        she laughs at horse and rider. (Verses 13-18)

The amazing variety of human ostriches out there is mind-boggling.  Sometimes, at first glance, we appear to be made for a certain purpose.  Saul, son of Kish, looked as though he were made to be king – tall, strong, and handsome.  But Israel and God discovered that Saul did not have what it took to be the king of Israel.  Then, the Lord chose David, son of Jesse, instead.  David was a lowly shepherd boy, the youngest of all his brothers; but God chose him because of what was in his heart.

With wings, an ostrich looks as though it was made to fly – such a grand a majestic bird.  Yet, the much smaller stork has pinions and feathers that make flight possible.  The ostrich is land-bound.  And, if one examines how the ostrich mother cares for her young, one would find that the ostrich is a terrible mother.  She leaves her eggs to warm in the sand – where they could be crushed or eaten by other wild animals.  She doesn’t seem to sense that her labor pains to produce the egg might be in vain.

What in the world can this goofy-looking bird do well?  It is too ungainly and cumbersome to fly.  It is too stupid to care for its offspring.  However, this bird does fly low.  An ostrich can easily outdistance a horse and rider.  An ostrich runs like the wind.  “Run, Forrest, run!”

All of us, in some ways, are goofy-looking and stupid.  But, when we find what the Great Creator has made us for, look out.  We will find pleasure in how well we were made.  We will laugh like the ostrich.

To laugh in our Great Creator’s wisdom in making each one of us unique, we must not compare ourselves to another.  If the ostrich would compare herself with the stork, she would be woefully upset that she could not fly.  If we look at the abilities of others, we may wistfully and woefully think about their gifts.  And we will miss the gifts that God has given us for His good pleasure and for ours.

Flap your wings and stomp your feet joyfully.  Because you know that even though your wings may not help you fly and your feet may not walk on water, your wings and your feet do help you to do marvelous things – maybe run like the wind.

Let us build one another up by looking for and naming each other’s gifts.  Then, we will be such an amazing zoo of God’s creatures that anyone passing by will stop to find out what all this joy is about.

Enough mumbling for now…

Peace Out