What can we learn from pet birds?

I was just having a casual chat with a friend recently when he began to tell me about his pet birds. Well, they are not exactly his in that his wife decided she wanted 2 pet birds, but she travels a lot and he is stuck caring for them.

As he described his experience with these birds, my ears perked up. Here's a little of what he said (paraphrasing). "Birds are the lowest from of pets, despised by many people but certainly considered of little value, kind of dispensable. They fall off their perch and cant get up by themselves.They make a mess and can't offer me anything."

He goes on to say, "but I found myself giving them more and more attention, wondering how they were doing and caring for them in intentional ways. One of the birds won't respond, but one does. One likes my affection, one ignores me. I think these birds were meant for me, not my wife,"

I smiled and said, listen to what you are saying. First, you chose to give the birds your attention and affection, right? "yes." They are the lowest form of pet and they have nothing to offer you, right? "right". One receives you and one does not. Is that what you said? "yes."

I was overwhelmed with the thought, then how is that different from God and you? and me? and YOU?

We discussed then how God visits us with His message for us in situations we find mundane and troublesome. My friend was seeing the birds as an imposition, mainly from his wife's initiatives. Yet, God revealed Himself to my friend in such an unexpected way. Its how we "gnosis" God, or "know Him" relationally. We can read about God, we can hear sermons about God, we can see pictures of God, hear testimonies of how God has moved in other people's lives OR we can experience what God is like as we unconditionally love OUR pet birds. We can see in our heart what it means to delight in some dysfunctional, messy being that has ZERO to offer us, except that it is OURS. We can see a glimpse of how God sees us.