My wife and I lived in Newbury Park, next to Thousand Oaks, for six years until we returned to Temecula just over a year ago. After we moved, a science teacher at our former school and I had this Facebook discussion, just after a hike she took in the open country in Newbury.
Leilani: A flock of green parrots just flew by! Have a great day, birds!
Tim: We have a couple of escaped parrots who live in some tall eucalyptus trees about 100 ft. away. Love to watch them!
L: Parrots are very hardy (her science background came out here, and made this post): they are not invasive, and as long as they have food sources they will be fine. They can tolerate low temperatures, surprisingly.
T: They seem to adapt well from the state of petness to freedom.
L: Yes they do. They seem to be OK with not living in a rainforest or jungle as well. Must be nice to be a parrot…more people should strive to be so flexible. Some people like to live in the cage with the open door.
With apologies to Jimmy Buffett, maybe we would benefit from being a parrothead. Not necessarily as followers of him or his music, but some traits of the bird.
Many of us live in cages with the door open. Cages of fear, of low self confidence, of tradition, of other’s expectations or pressure, of comfort, of luxury, of sins and bad habits, of a contentment with where we are that keeps us from better options.
To steal a line from the old Steppenwolf tune, we truly are “Born to be Wild.” Not tame. Not caged. Free to fly. And the source of freedom is important, as is the goal.
First, Jesus promised “Then you will know the truth and the truth will make you free” (John 8:32). How does that work? Realize that Jesus is the essence and source of truth. He has freed us from the bondage to sin and the caged life. That is truth applied.
The next step is our choice. Do we fly? Not for the goal of being immorally wild and hurting others and ourselves, but free from whatever cages keep us from being our best person, from doing our best acts, from living our best lives.
Kick Starting the Application
What cage keeps you personally in? Have you ever tested the door? What makes that cage somewhat attractive? What makes it a prison? Try to determine one goal for this next year where you try to fly free to a better place for you and God together. How can you implement it?