There are some days when I wake up feeling very energetic. And that’s when I can become a bit of a parrot daredevil. Instead of flying from one perch to another, or taking a casual stroll between the two, I choose to launch into a flying leap. Usually, I make it, but occasionally, I end up in a crumpled heap of feathers on the floor.
As we go through life, there are times when we all have to make a leap of faith. For example, when a young bird first leaves the nest. Or when humans climb on board a plane and depend upon the pilot for their safety. Or when they start a new job or get married. Or when they go into hospital for surgery. You see, in the human world, making a leap of faith is all about relinquishing control; it’s about handing over your fate and well-being to someone else. Humans can find that very difficult. They prefer to cling on to what they know, rather like giant limpets.
My owner has a friend who has just made a giant leap of faith. Because he needed major brain surgery to save his life. And he was forced to hand over everything that makes him what he is, into the hands of a specialist surgeon. A very skilled surgeon, but a someone that he was only able to meet on one occasion beforehand. That took incredible courage. But David is an incredible fellow with a strong Christian faith.
Sometimes, walking into a church for the very first time, saying your first ever prayer out loud, or committing yourself to a Christian journey, -these things can all be rather like handing yourself over to a surgeon. Because you have to accept that you’re not invincible. You’ll never be the ultimate master of your own fate.
“….But man, despite his riches, does not endure; he is like the beasts that perish. This is the fate of those who trust in themselves………” (Psalm 49:12-13a)
David is a shining example of someone full of Christian faith, and it’s enabled him to come through so much adversity in his life. He has found God, and totally trusts Him, come what may. And he’s usually done so with an inner sense of calm and peace……
“….but the mind controlled by the spirit is (filled with) life and peace.” (Romans 8:6b)
And that is why David’s a shining example to us all! Because in God, he’s discovered a treasure that will always endure beyond his adversity. He knows that ultimately, all will be well. Even when it doesn’t appear so in worldly terms.
Of course, my own leaps of faith from perch to perch are purely a bit of parrot fun. But when things aren’t so good for me, and a crisis comes my way, -forcing me to leap out into the unknown, -then I’ll be thinking of David. Oh yes. David Campbell, you’re a source of inspiration to a troubled world!
