We Find What We Are Looking For

The story is told that once in battle during WWII, General Creighton Abrams found himself and his troops surrounded on all sides. He turned to his officers and said, “For the first time in the history of this campaign, we are now in a position to attack the enemy in any direction.”

You’ve got to love the optimism!

You may have heard the analogy of the hummingbird and the vulture. Both fly over deserts. All vultures see are dead animals, because that is what they look for. But hummingbirds ignore all that. Instead, they look for the colorful blossoms of desert plants. The vultures live on what was. They live on the past. They fill themselves with what is dead and gone. But hummingbirds live on what is. They fill themselves with freshness and life. Each bird finds exactly what it is looking for. Just as we all do.

This raises the question: what are we looking for in life? Are we looking for potential slights, wrongs that have been done to us, reasons to hate others? Or, are we looking for God’s hand at work? Are we looking for the Spirit moving behind the scenes? Are we looking for the image of God in each and every person we meet?

The Apostle Paul once wrote: “Finally beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Let us pray: Maker of days, Creator of all life, in you we live and move and have our being. We praise you for the gift of this day, and indeed for the gift of life itself. Grant us eyes to see the beauty and good all around us. May we notice your hand at work even in the darkness. Remove from us any bitterness, hatred, or despair we may harbor, and set us free to love the world around us. We ask in the name of the One who is the Light of the world. Amen.