A murmuration of starlings is a
wonderful sight! This happens at dusk as
starlings congregate in ever increasing numbers to dance rhythmically across
the darkening sky. It is quite amazing
how they seem to do this without colliding and falling to the ground. Staring at the sight, as I
finished my digging in the vegetable plot at the end of the garden, was an
inspiring end to the day. Having been
talking earlier about the nature of church it was inevitable that the two
should in some way be combined.
Firstly there is the beauty of
the birds flying in unity that points to the beauty of the unity of the community
of believers that Jesus prayed for and is recorded in John 17 – “I pray that
all of them may be one…” It is a beautiful sight when the people of God live in unity.
Secondly there is the sound of
the birds flying together that would pass imperceptibly if it were a solitary
starling. This points to the wonderful synergy of
the family of God coming together. The
impact of the whole is greater than the sum of the parts when the various
gifts, talents and characters are combined.
Thirdly there is the common sense
of direction as the birds move together and not in opposing directions,
pointing to the common purpose of the people of God to know God and to make him
known. Serving the Lord with a shared vision and purpose is great.
Finally there is the
responsiveness to change as the birds move together in one direction and then
shift to another. Changes in direction
are something that the church frequently struggles with, but in doing so finds
new life.
God reveals himself in creation,
and I was glad to catch a glimpse of this in the vegetable patch today!
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