The Story of the Birds in the Birdcage: A poor, young lad captured 4 birds and put them in a birdcage. He then took them to market and tried to sell them for a penny a piece. As the day progressed, he became forlorn because no one was interested in his birds. About the time when the sun started to fade and the lad needed to return home, a kind stranger approached him and offered to buy his birds. The man asked, “How much do you want for the birds, son?” The lad replied, “They are only a penny a piece, sir.” The man reached into his pocket and gave him all the money that he had, which was a great deal. The lad feeling a little guilty said, “Sir, that’s too much, these birds are certainly not worth that much.” The man tapped the lad on his head, took the birds and said, “Son, these birds are priceless; they are worth everything to me.” The man then proceeded to open the cage and set the birds free.
I have to admit that I am an avid bird watcher, although my knowledge of birds is rather elementary. I know they are beautiful, they fly, they lay eggs, they build nests and they eat worms. Now, I don’t speak bird, but if I did, I would ask them a few questions, like: How can you fly to such amazing heights and seem to have no fear of falling? And how do you sing in such heavenly tones? I for one believe that the Creator has blessed them with such a freedom that few of us could ever understand. What an amazing way to live…free to fly.
I would imagine that the life of a bird bound inside a birdcage would differ greatly from one who lives outside of the birdcage. Where would you say she is the most fully alive?
There have been many reports of people, unlike the birds in our story, who when released from captivity chose to remain trapped in a self-imposed bondage to their souls for quite possibly the remainder of their lives, and there are also many testimonies of people who found freedom even in captivity. Can it be that freedom is a state of mind?
“Since God had placed both the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge in the middle of the Garden, Adam and Eve still had to make a choice daily to avoid the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. They had everything they needed to live a satisfying life. They were safe in the Garden, and they felt significant. Their most valuable treasure was the loving relationship that they had with the Father, and this became the devil’s number one target. Therefore, he tempted Eve with his lies in order to separate this beloved couple from this perfect relationship. Although God had provided for all of their needs, the serpent convinced Eve that partaking of the forbidden fruit was her solution to having total fulfillment. She was led to believe that God was holding out on her. These are the same tactics that he uses today to trap us into his evil web.” (Her Treasures: A Life Brand New, page 54) It seems that somehow we have forgotten that God is good and that “His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness." (2 Peter 1:3) Man has sung a song of lament ever since.
A lament is nothing more than a song of regret. It expresses the great loss of something that is of great value to us. If you look in your Bible, you will see a number of examples of laments, particularly in the book of Psalms.
Let’s listen to the laments of 4 birds that chose to remain in a birdcage even when they were given the option to be free.
The First Lament:
I’m a beautiful bird, colorful and bright,
If I say so myself, I’m a magnificent sight.
Some say I think too highly of myself, but what do they know?
In the birdcage of life, I’m the star of the show.
I’ve heard that real beauty is on the inside, but that’s only a myth.
And if you challenge me on this, I’ll plead the fifth.
I can’t get through the door, because frankly, I have a “big head.”
But what can I say, it’s not easy being soooo…red.
This cardinal thinks that she is “all that,” but she is actually in bondage to pride. She is getting her identity only from her appearance. All creatures in God’s kingdom are beautiful, but as a wise woman told me, “Honey, beauty comes from the inside-out.”
A believer has a spirit that is fully and eternally alive. She also has a body that is decaying and will eventually be replaced by a glorified body. She also has a soul that houses the mind, the will, and the emotions; it determines her personality. Both the body and the soul are susceptible to the flesh, which are those old thought patterns and habits that were developed in our old man that are contrary to God. The body and soul are constantly being attacked by this enemy---the flesh. But your spirit, which is your heart of hearts, sealed by the very hand of God at the time of your salvation, gives you the tools that can protect you from the flesh.
As you can see the soul is the most vulnerable part of us, the part that is the most susceptible to the devil’s lies. This is his battleground. This is where, if we are not careful, he can create strongholds. Most people who go to counseling are seeking relief and deliverance from these strongholds, but quite often we just try to cope in some way or another. These coping skills or manifestations of the flesh may seem to help us meet our needs but are truly only a band-aid when compared to true abundant living. You see we all cope with whatever life may hand us in many different ways, but our ways are not always God’s ways. “There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” (Proverbs 14:12) Quite often when we walk in the flesh, we will eventually suffer with some sort of residual pain. There is always a consequence for every action. We may try to stuff or hide from a problem, always seeking a fast fix, but the enemy uses this band-aid approach to keep us in bondage.
The soul has a mind that we will call the “thinker.” It has emotions that we will call the “feeler;” and it has a will that we will call the “chooser.” So, we have a thinker, a feeler, and a chooser. Only when all three of these components are in agreement with the spirit is when we have real freedom. But, praise God, we have the Spirit of God living inside us as a believer to help us when we need him. Could our problem be a lack of trust in the very one who came to save us?
The Second Lament
I’m a wise, old bird, way too cool for school.
An expert in the law, and I always follow the rules.
I’m certainly worthy of your respect and admiration.
And from my perch, I survey and judge all situations.
I do spend a lot of time in thought, and tend to isolate.
But give me a good doctrine, and I will swoop in to debate.
Because I’m a bird of prey, I show no mercy at all.
But fearfully, if I go outside, I think I’d have a long way to fall.
Obviously, the owl is living a soulish life in bondage to her thoughts. She finds her value and her identity in her intelligence and her religious beliefs. Could this behavior of superiority be just a mask to cover up her thoughts of confusion and fear?
You don’t have to live on this planet very long to realize that there are a lot of really smart people out there who don’t have a lick of wisdom. Having wisdom is truly a blessing; it is so much more valuable that you have understanding than knowledge alone. We are warned in Colossians 2:8, “See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, rather than according to Christ.” Girls, I’ll tell you, I wish that I had taken that bit of advice a million times in my life. We need to remember that our value comes from Christ alone. His Holy Spirit will always speak the truth and will always give you wise counsel…he will never steer you wrong. Check out Proverbs in you Bible if you want to know what it is to be truly wise. A wise person walks by the Spirit and not by the flesh. It says in 2 Timothy 2:7 that if we just listen, “the Lord will give you understanding in everything.” Some wise person said, “All sin begins with a thought, and it ends with an act of the will… Consult the Spirit.”
The Third Lament
I’m an insignificant bird, small and riddled with shame.
If you have a problem, hey, I’ll gladly take the blame.
One look at me would turn a smile upside down.
And of course, of all the colors, I had to be a dull, brown.
Whatever punishment is given, I most assuredly deserve.
Because I know that I am a very, very bad bird.
Poor me; If only I was worthy, I would fly through the door.
But that was only a dream, and I don’t dream anymore.
Obviously, the sparrow is living a soulish life in bondage to her feelings. She is extremely conscious of her sins and shortcomings. Could she be living a shame-based lifestyle. Women are especially vulnerable to this type of thinking, but we don’t have to constantly “beat up on ourselves.” We are naturally feeling creatures and are sometimes more emotional. But we are also nurturing; God made us this way. It is one of the beautiful traits of a woman, but all people, whether male or female are called to be loving.
Girls, listen up now, you cannot always trust your feelings. We will all have feelings of bitterness, anger, or doubt from time to time, and will not feel good about ourselves. But problems will surely arise if we allow ourselves to bow down to these feelings and allow them to rule our lives. These kinds of feelings can keep us bound in self-imposed prisons. To avoid this, as believers we have the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth. We need to consider ourselves dead to sin, we are creations with new hearts that do not want to sin. We are loved and have the best counselor known to man living inside us to guide us into all truth. Again, consult the spirit; he will lead you into victorious thinking.
The Fourth Lament
I’m an amazing bird; I can do 10 things at once.
Maybe that’s because, I eat sugar for lunch.
I stay in constant motion, so I get pretty dizzy.
Now you see me, now you don’t; it’s the life of the busy.
Friends? Are you kidding? There’s no time for Bird Sally or Bird Fred.
If I stop for anything, it will be to drop dead.
In here I have poked at others and made an enemy or two.
But hey, a bird’s got to do, what a bird’s got to do.
The hummingbird is living a soulish life. She finds her value only in her performance. She is an achiever and not a receiver. Hey, I’ve been there; how about you? Do you ever get so busy that you actually miss out on some of the good things in life? Think about this one now… are you choosing to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil or are you partaking of the Fruit of the Spirit from the Tree of Life on a regular basis? (Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-control) Are you so busy trying to be the best you can be instead of resting in the Lord and trusting him with every aspect of your life?
2 Corinthians says that “anyone who is Christ is a new creation,” but we sometimes either forget this truth or we choose not to live this way for various reasons. Sometimes we are not even aware of this. In other words, we have chosen bondage over freedom even though as the scripture says, “whoever is in Christ is free indeed.” This is a line from a movie that is worthy of some thought… “No, it’s not this place that doesn’t suit your life; it’s your life that doesn’t suit this place.” As believers we have New Life (Forgiven and Free)
Let’s listen to this last song from another bird who decided to step outside of the birdcage of life and reflect on God’s Amazing Grace. Ask yourself, how would believing with your whole heart that you are loved so much that someone would give everything, even their life, to set you free? How could the power of a love like that change you and cause you to sing a song of praise instead of a song of lament?
A Bird’s Song of Praise
You might ask me the secret of having an abundant life.
You might ask me how one finds peace in the middle of such strife.
All I can tell you is that I finally saw the light;
I stopped depending on me and gave up the fight.
The turmoil in my soul was keeping me bound.
I’d made my own prison where no joy was found.
I knew in my heart that I was meant to fly free,
And the only thing stopping me, was frankly, just me.
The old me that used to be, was dragging me down,
But my new spirit kept telling me, “Open your eyes, look around.”
“The gate’s wide open; I’m calling you out by a new name,
Now shake off those old feathers of fear and shame… And fly.”
And fly I did, with such grace, I flew like I had never flown before!
I stopped searching and found a place to rest,
Not on a pedestal, but lifted high, never the less.
There I was fed the choicest fruits and living water,
I was treated like a princess, loved as a daughter.
I know now who I am; I can stop looking to find me.
I can rest in his Grace and be content to just…be.
My heart is no longer captive; I will sing of his love,
Because I’ve been given new life, I’m now as free as a dove.
Matthew 10:29-31
Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear, you are more valuable than many sparrows.
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