The Tortoise and the Birds

Philippians 2:3-11

Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,

I once heard a funny story that I thought I’d share with you: There once was a bright green tortoise that had a big dream: to travel the world. He had always dreamed of seeing the world, smelling the different smells, meeting new creatures…. It was his grandest dream. For many days he wondered if there was a way he could accomplish his dream. One day, as he watched a large group of birds flying through the air, an idea came to his mind. Clearing his throat, he began to call the birds. Finally, two curious birds flew down to see what the tortoise wanted. The tortoise explained that he wanted to travel the world and see new sights, hear new sounds, but he was too slow to do so. He politely asked the two birds if they would be willing to help him. He explained that perhaps the two birds could hold a stick between their beaks, and he would hold on to the stick with his mouth, while the birds flew around the world. It was a clever idea indeed, and the birds, wanting to help the tortoise, agreed. Minutes later, the tortoise was up in the air with the birds, his life-long dream finally being fulfilled. I’m such a smart little tortoise, he thought to himself. Who would have thought of such an idea? As he peered down below him, he saw some humans talking amongst themselves, “Wow! Look at that! Those birds must be mighty smart to have come up with such an idea!” Anger began to boil up inside the tortoise. The other human added, “I guess I really underestimate the intelligence of birds!” That did it. The tortoise could not handle it any more. He had to put these silly humans in place. Yelling out he screamed, “Hey! You… AGGHHHH!!!” As soon as those first words left his mouth, the tortoise had unwillingly let go of the stick he was holding on to, and fell down to the ground far below.

          There’s this small five letter word that gets many of us into trouble: pride. We all struggle with it, and it’s a cause of much trouble today. The wisest man once said, “Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall.” Proverbs 16:18 Many arguments start because we do not want to admit that we’re wrong. Many fights start because both sides do not want to show their weakness. People fight over power and position, because of pride. That’s how the world does things, always defending self, always thinking better of self than of others, but that’s not God’s way. Jesus lived a life of self-denial and humility. He once said in Matthew 8:20 “And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”” You see, if Jesus, the King, God Himself, was able to live outside, sleep on the grass, surely we can be humble too. Humility is God’s way, and I am sure it would save us from a lot of trouble.

\Picture Story: Once again, I found this picture on the internet, but I chose this Indian and Greek fable because it has a powerful moral to it.