Tip of My Iceberg

        photo courtesy of Abhishek Singh on Unsplash

Living in Orlando provides us with the unexpected and unusual.

Besides all the theme parks and kitschy places to shop and eat, we have unusual birds, which have many birders (that’s what they’re called!) lurking around, staring at the world through binoculars.

We’ve got flamingos in all their pink glory, and anhinga, called snakebirds, who dive deep for fish and need to dry their wings out periodically. Brown pelicans who can scoop up lunch from local waters easier than a fisherman. Black-bellied whistling ducks with pink dangly feet. The ever-annoying, screeching sand hill cranes who are afraid of nothing.

The ones that fascinate me the most are the vultures. Bald-headed with huge feet and very long toes, they’re carrion birds who feast off road kill and any other dead animals they come across. They work together to keep animal corpses from filling up the world. Their job is disgusting, but imagine what our world would look like if all the dead animals were allowed to decay, become diseased, and spread infections far and wide. They’re true helpers in our world.

Just because someone’s job isn’t something we appreciate or understand doesn’t mean there isn’t value in what they do,

Many people refused to believe Jesus was who He said He was because He didn’t appear to be the leader the Jewish people were looking for. They wanted a warrior king who would save them from Roman oppressors.

Jesus was a Man of forgiveness and grace. His attitude toward leadership was very counterintuitive to the way we live today.

“But Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give His life as a ransom for many.’” Matthew 20:25-28

The way Jesus operated wasn’t what most people would choose to do. He declined the elegant and lavish lifestyle that many in power often prefer. He spent a lot of time with the outcasts of the world, those who weren’t valued or even seen by others.

Jesus saw value in everyone, from the the worst and most broken to the elite and powerful.

Jesus gathered people around Him who were salt of the earth types–fishermen and tax collectors. None of whom were considered people of worth in that time. Their jobs weren’t glamorous–but they were the people who changed the world as they spread the good news of Jesus.

Vultures are typically seen as the bad guys. Or at the very least, the unlovely.

Jesus is often seen as less than who He really is.

Don’t be confused by the naysayers.

Jesus is the real deal.