When life gets too noisy, think of the Albatross

The Albatross

In college I had a lady professor for English, but she taught us way outside of the classroom. She rode the buses with us in our ministry, prepared us to go soulwinning, worked alongside us in the  youth department showing us how to reach the toughest of Chicago teenagers, and taught me to love to sing even though I'm not good at it. She didn't just tell us how to do things, she showed us. I will never be the teacher Mrs. Belinda was to me and still IS to others at Hyles-Anderson, but she has given hundreds of us an example to follow.

                                  Mrs. Belinda and Bob on their wedding day.

The albatross has the largest wingspan (up to 11 ft) of any bird in the world, and the Andean Condor (a predator) is not far behind him. They mostly live out on the waters of the vast ocean, taking breaks on small islands when necessary. Researching them, I found that many of them are also equatorial as well as traveling as north as Alaska on the West coast and Maine on the East. Their wings are so large, they can soar and glide for hours  on ocean winds without flapping or stopping to take a rest.

This reminds me of my God. He never gets tired; never needs a rest from me or the troubles of this world; never needs to turn around and start over. He has all things under control. Mrs. Belinda gave us many lessons that have stayed with me, namely to always be listening to God's still small voice. I'm stuck right now on Psalm 91. What an amazing chapter.

Psalm 91 teaches us to trust in our God so fully that we are completely covered by His feathers and hidden under His wings. What a safe place to be. The only way to acquire this kind of closeness is to do what verse 1 promises: dwell with Him in the secret place. We can only achieve this when we do what Mrs. Belinda used to teach us, and that is to turn down the noise, tune out the world, and listen to God's still small voice. It is so worth it.

One more thing. The albatross lives a long life. He chooses one mate and shares the responsibility of their one egg, and makes his nest where he was hatched! That's amazing that of all the miles an albatross travels, he finds his way back to his roots to begin his new life.

 I'm so glad that I'm important enough to God that He doesn't turn His back on me. He carries me through the tough times, and protects me when the enemy attacks. Like verse 15 says, he hears me when I call upon Him. It's a promise.