My Teacher - Part 2

Over the past several weeks, I have been visited each morning by a hummingbird.  In watching it dart from the fountain, to the lemon tree, to the flowers it has been teaching me (I wrote about this in a previous Note).  I have enjoyed watching it flitter around the yard so much I made a decision to go out and buy a hummingbird feeder.

With some help from a self-proclaimed hummingbird feeder expert, I picked out just the right one.  After bringing it home, I did some research online to find out how to make the best mixture with which to fill my feeder.  I then pick an appropriate spot to hang it.  Once the hook was in place, the chain cut to the right length, and the mixture cooled in the refrigerator, I set out my gift to my friend.  Like a host who sets out Ice Tea and watermelon on a hot summer day for the friend who has come to visit, I hung this feeder to let my new friend know how much I appreciated his presence.

Over the next several mornings, I sat in my Jacuzzi learning to float (see previous note), and watched the little bird flitter into the yard.  No longer did he dart from the fountain, lemon tree and flowers.  Now, he went directly to the feeder.  After taking a long drink, he flew out of the yard.

At first, I was pleased.  I had brought a gift and he had accepted it.  I was able to be gracious to my little friend.  As the days passed, however, my pleasure began to turn to sadness.

I had thought that the newness of the feeder would wear off and the hummingbird would once again return to darting about the yard.  It has not happened.  The bird now simply flies into the yard, feeds and then flitters away.  My back yard, which once was a place of exploration for the bird, has become restricted to a singularly focused feeding spot.

Yes, the hummingbird is able to find food at any time, but what has he lost?

I started to think about how God provides for the bird.  He does not set all the nectar in one place, but disperses it in blooms, blossoms and flowers across a landscape.  This causes the hummingbird to venture out and explore.  It causes him to fulfill his vocation of pollinating flowers, allowing the plants thrive.  These are often some of the most beautiful flowers in the garden, and so in some way his vocation is to be part of spreading beauty.  It also causes him to be active and while I am no biologist, I have to imagine that this makes the bird strong and healthy.  Then there is the reality that in God’s perfect design of the hummingbirds feeding system, the bird is dependent upon his heavenly Father that feeds him.  He learns to trust the one who created him.

Watching him come into the yard, go directly to the feeder, and then dart out of the yard again, I could not help but think about how I had circumvented all of this.  The bird was becoming dependent on my feeder and not on the Father.  In the process of creating this dependence, I had invited him to lay aside his freedom, vocation, and dependence on the Father.  This stirred sadness in me.

As I thought about it more, I wondered how often we do the same thing with people.  We, because we see a need or we need to be needed, willingly allow others to become dependent upon us instead of helping them to explore what God is doing, fulfill their vocation, and learn to trust their heavenly Father who willingly feeds the birds.  How much more valuable are they to Him?  Will he not care for them?  Why do we seek to take God’s place?

I mentioned all of this to a friend who is the closest thing to a bird expert that I know.  She acknowledged that the feeder does seem to have the effect of making the birds dependent and it does seem to rob the hummingbird of some of what it was created to be and do.  She told me that though she has a feeder, she does not always keep it full.  She keeps the bird guessing and forces it at times to go back out and find what it needs in the ecosystem God created.  This seemed to me a half step toward the good.

After researching it a bit more online I have found that there are certain flowers you can plant that will provide what the hummingbirds needs without causing the kind of dependence that robs him of his vocation and purpose.  It seems to me in this way, you are not become the one upon which the bird depends, but rather you are joining God in His work of providing not only for the bird, but also for the flowers.  This seems to me to be the essence of real hospitality, so I plan to plant some new flowers in my back yard.

I wonder how we can demonstrate this kind of hospitality to one another.  How can we refrain from creating dependence that takes the place of the system God has put into place, which allows for the fulfillment of our vocation and purpose.  How can we encourage another’s growth in trust and dependence upon Him?  How can we join God in what He is doing, rather than trying to provide our feeder upon which people can become dependent?

I imagine each situation and each relationship will be different, just like there are different flowers you would plant for hummingbirds verses what you would plant for bees. What we must become are people who do more than simply recognize the needs around us.  We must also be able to recognize our own hearts motivation, but most importantly, we must be able to discern the ecosystem the Father has set in place to meet the needs of his children, to help them become strong and healthy, to enable them to fulfill their vocation, and to teach them that He is trustworthy and dependable.

Once we have figured out what this garden looks like, we can then turn our attention to fulfilling our vocation of joining the Father in what he is doing, helping to cultivate an environment that helps other to thrive.  I believe joining God in creating such a place much joy will be found.  The kind of joy you get when you see a hummingbird flitter and dart around the backyard in freedom.