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Refreshment in Refuge
by Gina Burgess
That question was asked in the Studylight forums this past week. It is a very thought provoking question. What declares God in this world? David tells us that His handiwork declares Him in Psalm 19. Isaiah reminds us that we are his handiwork in chapter 64. Paul talks about the testimony of the world and the universe in Romans 1. But, where do you see God?
There is an astounding thing that I have personally witnessed which is a wonderful declaration from God. It is Him saying, “Look here. I would that you act like this.”
This spectacular sight I witnessed was right after my office was finished. We closed in the "hot tub" patio minus the hot tub and put in some storage cabinets and my office stuff with some shelves that my Dad had in his airport office, and two sides of it were all windows. How glorious to see the sun rise up over the Bradford Pears in the early morning, or to see the fog snuggle close under the mighty Oaks. I saw all kinds of things in this rural setting such as a hawk swooping down for his dinner, a squirrel hiding his winter horde of pecans, and all manner of birds.
One crisp, crystal clear October day, I was looking out the windows, quite pleased at how much I could see when I spotted something peculiar over the trees, almost parallel to First Baptist Church’s white spire. Over Lake St. Joe and winding down from the heights was this swirling column of white birds. I had heard that it was such a beautiful site to see the pelicans come in but I had no idea just how magnificent it is.
About a hundred and fifty feet in the air, they start to spiral down one after the other. They fly in at a diagonal to precisely the same point as the bird ahead, then tip their huge wing expanse toward the water like an arrow or finger pointing to one particular spot and fly in a spiral formation down to the water one after another until the whole flock has made it to the night’s rest. It was like a lighthouse beacon, only instead of a light, the brilliant white feathers of the six foot wingspan reflected the sun’s rays. The glorious display went on for at least ten minutes, perhaps fifteen because I got so caught up in the wonder of it.
This spiral beacon only happens when they are migrating to a warmer climate. Migrating flocks can be as large as 1,000 birds or as few as 100. This flock must have been at least 500 birds, and they are not small. They can get as heavy as twenty pounds (the average is about 17 pounds).
Can you just imagine how tired these birds are as they are flying in, hungry, wing sore and yet they swirl in a column for several minutes as a beacon so their brethren and sisterns and childurns can find the home rest below. Imagine how filled with relief after flying for hours on end, these birds felt when they finally saw the steady flash of white saying, “Rest is here. Rest is here.”
Jesus told us that we are the light of the world. We are to reflect Him, and all who are weary and heavy laden are to come to Him and He will give rest. What a fabulous physical picture of this spiritual truth we find in the way of the mighty pelican.
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Gina Burgess has taught Sunday School and Discipleship Training for almost three decades. (Don't tell her that makes her old.) She earned her Master's in Communication in 2013.
She is the author of several books including: When Christians Hurt Christians, The Crowns of the Believers and others available in online bookstores. She authors several columns, using her God-given talent to shine a light in a dark world. You can browse her blog at Refreshment In Refuge.
If you'd like to take a look at some Christian fiction and Christian non-fiction book reviews check out Gina's book reviews at Upon
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