By Michele Eich
One of life’s great pleasures is observing hummingbirds every summer. The way they dip and dart in aerial splendor makes my heart happy. While watching them, I marvel at God’s creative abilities. He sure did pack a lot of ingenuity in that tiny little package. These hummers have been called “flying jewels” because of their radiant brilliance, especially when the miniature feathers sparkle in the sun.
As I am writing this blog, I can see my feeder hanging from our deck. The female “guard dog” is sitting above it, waiting to shoo off any other bird that would dare to drink from her feeder. When the ruby-throated male approaches, the female won’t have it and dive bombs him away from what she deems as hers exclusively. Even though there are six holes in it, they’re not good at sharing which reminds me of our children at the dinner table on pizza night back in the day.
Early fall is the time of year that the tiny birds are ready to migrate, and I am always a little sad to see them leave. Not only do I miss them, but their departure means that colder temps are on the horizon. I’ve often threatened to head South with them. Somehow these amazing creatures can navigate in flight for thousands of miles as they head to warmer temps for the winter, a migratory feat that boggles the mind. I often need a GPS to get to the next town over, yet these spectacular little birds can find their way to Mexico and then back in the spring and return to the same feeder!
While researching them recently, I learned many millennial marvels about hummingbirds. For starters, they visit 1,000 flowers a day. Their wings beat 1,000 times per minute which creates the “hummer” sound. Remarkably, their little hearts beat 1,000 times per minute. The sweet nectar of flowers or sugar in the feeder energizes them to accomplish spectacular feats.
These little birds are incredible, but I discovered a flaw they have when one of them accidentally flew into our garage one summer day. The poor thing tried to fly up and kept bumping into our open garage door. Time and time again it would try to escape by moving upward. This was hard to watch, but we hoped it would eventually figure it out and simply fly down then get beyond the door to freedom. After all, they are obviously pretty smart little birds with impeccable navigation systems!
This didn’t happen, so after it had exhausted itself, my husband put on gloves and carefully approached the scared and battered little bird. He was able to catch the hummer and gently cradle it until he could get beyond the door and let it go. The bird paused briefly then lifted off and disappeared around the corner. I was so relieved that it survived thanks to the quick and compassionate actions of my husband.
When I thought about this, I marveled at the fact that this tiny creature could do so much. I mean, this bird could suspend itself in midair and even fly backwards! It had the ability to navigate to Mexico and back to the Midwest with no apparent problems, but it could not figure out to fly down a couple feet to escape to freedom. The more I thought about this phenomenon, the more I realized that there is a powerful lesson in this scenario for all of us.
Humans are amazing creatures as well; we have been intricately designed by the same God who made the iridescent hummingbird. We can walk, talk, invent, speak, dance, compose, dream, nurture, and more. That is because we are made in the image of our Creator. However, we cannot seem to break free from the ceilings that often limit us.
Like the trapped hummingbird, all we need to do is lower ourselves in order to ascend. It is so simple, but like the little hummer in our garage, we can’t seem to figure out how to do that. Humility is not something that comes naturally for most of us, but if we can simply let go and bow down, then we are free to come up higher with God and reach our fullest potential as His beloved children.
This truth reminds me of this powerful scripture: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:6, 7).
When I try to get untangled from life’s messes, I often feel trapped by the hindrances keeping me down. Just like that hummingbird trying to escape, I too keep banging my head against obstacles instead of simply letting go. When I humble myself, only then can God rescue me from my predicament. Then I am free to soar to new heights with Him and reach my destination, no matter how far away it seems.
“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 14:11 ESV).
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