Lesson from a Killdeer

It was during finals week, and I was in my apartment studying for my upcoming exam. Suddenly the dorm doorbell rang, jarring my ears and motivating me to rush to the front door for the purpose of intercepting whoever kept pushing that button. Opening the door, I found my classmate waiting outside with a smile on his face. "Wanna come see something?" Nathan quietly asked. "It's just around the corner." After slipping into my sandals, I followed him around the corner of the building to the parking lot by the bookstore. "Watch," he whispered. A moment later I saw the killdeer. It was piteously chirping and dragging its wing as if it were injured. "We're near its nest," Nathan explained. "Look!" And there, in the dusty gravel at our feet, lay two tiny eggs, surrounded by a few twigs to mark out the boundaries of the little bird-home.

The poor mother killdeer was so distressed! But within a minute, both of those giants were gone, she knew not where nor did she care, so long as they left her precious eggs alone. But Nathan and I hadn't gone far or for very long. With the aid of the construction manager and some of his bright orange cones, we were determined to enforce the boundaries of the little nest and attempt to provide the little family with some protection against the cars and people that would soon be arriving for graduation weekend. 

To the poor little mama bird, this was even more distressing! Not only had the two giants returned, but they had brought with them three smaller giants, each dressed in bright, neon orange! And the three orange giants were standing awfully close to her nest, with no sign of leaving. She tried her hardest to distract us from her precious nest, crying loudly the whole time.

Then I realized how much I am like that terrified killdeer. How many times have I run, crying in terror, from the very things God is using to protect me, to help me reach my dreams, to save my future? Yet how patient God is with me! I'm so thankful!

Note: The mother killdeer got over her fear of the orange cones within a few hours. She even laid a third egg in the nest and accepted the protection of the cones.