Duane's thoughts Apr 21 2016

Hi. I hope that you all have been having a great week. I have a story to tell you this week. It’s about my friend and his parrot. Several years back, a friend of mine got a parrot. I’m not sure how he came by it but it was already an adult when he got it and he was really excited about it. But there was one problem with it. It wouldn’t talk. And that made my friend very disappointed. He really wanted it to talk because, after all, that’s what parrots do. I remember seeing to him a couple of days after he got it and he told me the problem. I suggested that perhaps he should put a audio player (in those days it would have been a cassette tape) next to it’s cage that played a simple phrase over and over. After hearing it a few thousand times, perhaps it would pick it up. I saw my friend again a couple of days later and asked him if he had tried the audio player and he said he did. I asked if the parrot had talked and he said no but that the tape was driving him crazy. So I suggested that he put a mirror in the cage so that the parrot would see it and have someone to talk to. He that that was a great idea and said he would try it. I saw my friend again a couple of days later and asked him if he had tried the mirror and he said he did. I asked if the parrot had talked and he said no although it was much taken with it’s reflection. I thought about it for a bit and suggested that he put a swing perch in the cage. That way when the parrot landed on  it he would be surprised and perhaps would cry out with a phrase or two. He that that was a great idea and said he would try it. I saw my friend again a couple of days later and asked him if he had tried the swing perch. He said he had. I asked if the parrot had talked yet and he said no but that it really like the swing. I thought about it again and suggested that he get a feather bob to hang in the cage. That way the parrot would see it and think it was a competitor and that it would start talking to get rid of it. He that that was a great idea and said he would try it. I saw my friend again a couple of days later and asked him if he had tried the feather bob and he said he had. I asked if the parrot had talked yet and he said no but that it was getting to be quite good a punching the feather bob. I thought about it again and this time I knew what the problem was. I told my friend that he should get the parrot a cuttlebone. Before the bird could talk it had to sharpen it’s beak, right? I was sure that this would work. He that that was a great idea and said he would try it. As you can probably guess, that didn’t work and neither did the several other things I suggested over the next week or so. Finally one day I saw my friend in town and asked “Has anything at all worked? Has that parrot talked yet?” My fiend shook his head and told me “Not really and it’s not going to. The parrot died.” I looked at him in disbelief. “He died without saying a single word?” I asked. My friend replied “Well actually, he did say one thing before he died.” "What was it?” I asked. My friend, looking very somber, said “I came in and found him laying on the floor of his cage. I could see his beak moving so I put my ear close. That’s when I heard him whisper: ‘Food…’ Then he was gone.” Sometimes we focus on the things that we think they need without noticing the things that they need the most. And sometimes with ourselves we can focus on those things that we think are most important - the things that everyone else will notice - without noticing what it is that we need the most. In John 21:15-18 Jesus askes Peter three times if Peter loves him. Each time Peter says of course he does. And each time Jesus tells peter to take care of and feed his sheep. Whether we notice our own needs or the needs of others, we are nourished by the Spirit working through us. “‘Feed my sheep’ Jesus said.” (and parrots!) Upcoming Events: New Light, Friday April 22, 7:15  High School class this Sunday Spirit West Coast Christian Music Festival, June 12 BTW, if you have any announcements you would like included, just let me know and I will include them. Cheers! Duane P.S. If you want to check out this or any other notes that I have sent or see the latest happening with New Light, check out: http://newlightnotes.blogspot.com

People (33) Duane Fowler dlfowler@comcast.net