During the summer of 2012, I took some courses at Blue Mountain Christian University. While there, a dear friend, Ms. Anna, opened her home to me so I could stay while finishing a few classes before heading to seminary. As I stood on Ms. Anna’s covered porch, waiting to enter her home, she began sharing the most intriguing story about a flock of birds, a torn-down nest, and a struggle to return, which kept everyone quite busy.
Before my visit, two birds built a nest in the top right corner of Ms. Anna’s porch, where they started their family. As the babies grew, the porch became a busy area, with birds flying everywhere, disturbing guests trying to enter my dear friend’s home. Eventually, the decision was made to remove the nest, hoping the birds would find other places to nest, like the birdhouses in Ms. Anna’s backyard. To everyone’s surprise, and mine too, the nest was torn down four times, and each time the birds returned to rebuild in the same spot. Even after hanging a plastic snake and an owl, the birds kept fighting to return and rebuild.
After hearing this story in 2013, I thought to myself, “What a spiritual application it had.” How often do we, too, fight to “Return” when God has said, “Move forward!” How frequently do we hold on to friendships, situations, or even places that God is calling us to move away from?
Thirteen years later, I visited Ms. Anna’s home again. To my surprise, the same “Battle to Return” had come back, not only with a new group of birds but also inside my heart.
As I entered Ms. Anna’s kitchen, I asked if she was still having trouble with birds building nests on her porch. She said yes and walked me outside to show me the current situation. When I stepped onto the porch, my eyes immediately went to a partially torn-down nest, with a plastic snake beside it to keep the birds away.
At this point in my life, I wanted to return to a place I once loved. I understood that God was doing a new thing in my life, opening a door and redirecting my entire ministry outreach. Still, I longed to go back. Even though I sensed God had said no, I kept asking for clarity. And He gave it.
The next morning, I woke up and got ready to leave. Ms. Anna believed the birds wouldn’t come back because of the snake they had put out. I reminded her of what happened in 2013—that despite the snake, they still returned. I hadn’t even finished talking when we opened the door, and there were the birds approaching the snake to see if it was okay to come back to the nest.
As I reflected on this scene, I watched a bird carefully inch its way toward the nest. It wasn’t forceful at first, just testing the area to see if it was safe to return. That’s when I noticed something strange in the bird’s mouth. As I looked closer, I saw what it was—grass and mud. Simply put, they were the birds’ building supplies for the nest. Clearly, the bird had ignored all the warning signs of returning, paying no attention to the snake or the torn-down nest.
As I drove away from Ms. Anna’s, I couldn’t get the image of the bird’s mouth, filled with grass and mud, out of my mind. For I, too, had my own plans and supplies, trying hard to return. However, on this day, God made it very clear that His answer was no.
There are times in our lives when God moves us from one season to the next. There are specific docks where our boats have been tied—whether to certain friendships or acquaintances—that God might be prompting us to loosen the ropes or even completely untie them. There are places we’ve been anchored to that God is pulling up the anchor from. And when these things happen, a battle often arises within our hearts to resist the change rather than embrace the new things God is doing in our lives.
The Lord was guiding my steps onto a new path, but I had to let go of what was behind and move forward into what lies ahead.
Remember, obedience always brings blessings. However, a return not directed by God can lead to destruction as well as discipline. Even if we don’t understand His actions and it feels painful, obedience will always lead us to God’s blessings and His best.
Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, (14)I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14)
