From the Heart Message

 

Walking down the road today I was taken back by the song birds singing from the forest, from telephone wires, from tree tops, from all around. I was taken back to a story shared with me by my friends in Unity House, Great Britain.

Swifts migrate from the tropics each year, flying and darting about eating insects. Swifts, the most aerial of birds, fly nearly all the time, up to 200,000 km, they dart about collecting flies and other delicacies for them and their young.

 

Recently someone in Unity House discovered a swift had gotten tangled in some old wiring high up near a gable in the back of the Edwardian house. It was caught and could not get free. So they rang RSPCA, that usually takes care of these situations, but they were busy and could not get to it in time. So, being Unity House, where Silent Unity is happening, they prayed.

 

Then someone thought of calling Richard, the gardener who comes round when he can to care for the gardens and helps where he can. They rang him up and asked him to come quickly with his ladders. He climbed up to the gable with Steve holding the ladder and was able to cut away the old obsolete wires. While he was cutting away the wires, amazingly other swifts flew very close to the house as if giving support and encouragement to the bird. They were overjoyed to see the precious bird in Richard’s hands when he climbed down.

 

They were advised by RSPCA to place the little bird in a box in a dark place for it to settle down after the ordeal and get over the shock. After this they found the little guy was barely lifting its head, as if it had given up. The Silent Unity team stood in a circle and prayed. They placed the box out on the veranda on the first floor. After several minutes the bird did not move nor show interest in moving. Then, as Silent Unity Director, Kimerie Mapletoft mused to Jane Gough, Director of Daily Word, several swifts flew near and around him. He lifted his head, spread his wings and flew away.

 

Sometimes we feel like that bird, tangled up in old wires that we got into without really knowing how or why. And in the tangle we can’t sort it out and sometimes can’t find our way. But then someone comes along, or calls or offers something that breaks the spell. “It was a powerful moment,” Kimerie wrote of the lesson, “reminding us that we cannot fly alone – we all need each other to fly and soar and be the living and free expressions of God we truly are. So next time you have a problem, don’t try to sort it out all alone. Call on your friends, your family, Silent Unity, and above all call on the divine presence of God and know that together we can fly.”

 

Today, July 14, is Bastille Day, marking the end of feudalism in France. Let it end everywhere In relationships. In religions. In homes. In hearts. May all be free.