God and the Lost Geese
There was once a man named Thomas who didn't believe in God, and he didn't hesitate to let others know how he felt about religion. His little wife Mary, on the other hand, did believe and she raised their children to have faith in God and Jesu despite Thomas' disparaging remarks.
Thomas and Mary lived in a nice little mid-western farming community. On one winter evening, despite the harsh and uninviting weather, Mary was taking her children to bible study. That evening's lesson was about Jesus becoming man so he could save mankind. Mary asked Thomas to come, but he naturally refused. "That story is is nonsense!!" he said. "Why would God lower himself to come to Earth as man? That's ridiculous!!" So she and the children left, and he stayed home.
Later that night the storm grew into a blizzard, as Thomas looked out the window he was blinded by a snowstorm. He sat down to relax when he heard a loud thump. Suddenly something hit the window, but Thomas couldn't see more than a few feet. When he finally ventured out into the storm he found a flock of wild geese in his yard. Apparently they were migrating south for the winter and got caught in the storm. They were lost and stranded with no food or shelter. They pathetically flapped their wings in panic.
Thomas felt sorry for the helpless geese and wanted to resque them. He thought "The barn would be a great place for them to wait out the storm, they would be safe and warm." So he walked over to the barn and opened the doors wide, hoping the geese would notice and go inside. But the geese of course did not recognize what he was doing. He tried to get their attention by waking his arms but that just scared them and they moved away. He got some food he had for his geese and made a trail leading to the barn. They still didn't catch on and he was getting frusterated. He got behind them and tried to shoo them ito the barn but the only scattered. Nothing he attempted could get them to understand he was trying to save them. "Why don't they follow me?" He exlamed to himslef. "Can't they see this is the only place they can survive the storm?"
He thought a moment and realized, "they are geese and I'm human. If I were a goose I could call them and I could save them." and he screamed it out loud. Then he had an idea, I'll go get one of my geese and circle the flock and he did. When he released his goose and it flew strait back into the barn, on by one the wild geese followed it strait into the safety of the barn.
Thomas stood stunned for a moment at what he had screamed into the wind earlier. "If I were a goose I could call them and I could save them." Then the connection was made, as he thought back to what he had said to his wife earlier, "Why would God lower himself to come to Earth as man? That's ridiculous!!" Now it made sense. That was what God had done. We were like those geese, blind, lost, and perishing, so Jesus became a man so he could call us and save us.
"For the son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19:10
As he pondered his enlightenment his soul became quiet and years of doubt and disbelief began to vanish. He fell to his knees and prayed "Thank you God for for coming here as a man to lead me into your shelter! What must I do?"
"Peter said to them, "repent and let each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will recieve the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:38
Thomas and Mary lived in a nice little mid-western farming community. On one winter evening, despite the harsh and uninviting weather, Mary was taking her children to bible study. That evening's lesson was about Jesus becoming man so he could save mankind. Mary asked Thomas to come, but he naturally refused. "That story is is nonsense!!" he said. "Why would God lower himself to come to Earth as man? That's ridiculous!!" So she and the children left, and he stayed home.
Later that night the storm grew into a blizzard, as Thomas looked out the window he was blinded by a snowstorm. He sat down to relax when he heard a loud thump. Suddenly something hit the window, but Thomas couldn't see more than a few feet. When he finally ventured out into the storm he found a flock of wild geese in his yard. Apparently they were migrating south for the winter and got caught in the storm. They were lost and stranded with no food or shelter. They pathetically flapped their wings in panic.
Thomas felt sorry for the helpless geese and wanted to resque them. He thought "The barn would be a great place for them to wait out the storm, they would be safe and warm." So he walked over to the barn and opened the doors wide, hoping the geese would notice and go inside. But the geese of course did not recognize what he was doing. He tried to get their attention by waking his arms but that just scared them and they moved away. He got some food he had for his geese and made a trail leading to the barn. They still didn't catch on and he was getting frusterated. He got behind them and tried to shoo them ito the barn but the only scattered. Nothing he attempted could get them to understand he was trying to save them. "Why don't they follow me?" He exlamed to himslef. "Can't they see this is the only place they can survive the storm?"
He thought a moment and realized, "they are geese and I'm human. If I were a goose I could call them and I could save them." and he screamed it out loud. Then he had an idea, I'll go get one of my geese and circle the flock and he did. When he released his goose and it flew strait back into the barn, on by one the wild geese followed it strait into the safety of the barn.
Thomas stood stunned for a moment at what he had screamed into the wind earlier. "If I were a goose I could call them and I could save them." Then the connection was made, as he thought back to what he had said to his wife earlier, "Why would God lower himself to come to Earth as man? That's ridiculous!!" Now it made sense. That was what God had done. We were like those geese, blind, lost, and perishing, so Jesus became a man so he could call us and save us.
"For the son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost." Luke 19:10
As he pondered his enlightenment his soul became quiet and years of doubt and disbelief began to vanish. He fell to his knees and prayed "Thank you God for for coming here as a man to lead me into your shelter! What must I do?"
"Peter said to them, "repent and let each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will recieve the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:38