I work on a farm. We have horses, a goose, chicken, peahen and some peacocks. It is the later of these that I want to talk about today. We don’t have just any peacocks we have a genetic variant of the Indian Blue. They are commonly referred to as Albino peacocks. If you have seen pictures of these before you have seen what appears to be a living snowflake. In full plume they are magnificent birds. The pictures that you don’t usually see are their twice a year malting. It is of this I want to focus on.

I was waiting on a client and saw our lovely peacock, who was missing his feathers, trying to court the peahen. He had the 4 remaining feathers into the “look at me” position and was shaking his tail feathers. Now in full plume this is really a sight to behold. There is the sound of feathers shaking and it looks like a dance that includes costumes and choreography that rivals Broadway. In partial plumage, not so much. It looks more like a low budget off off Broadway film. The thing is, he didn’t know it. No mirror to look in, no one to laugh and tell him “dude, you don’t look as good as you think you do.” He didn’t care. He was just as wildly courting the lady bird as in full regalia.

the question I pose is this. In this world of plumage envy, magazines telling us how we should feel and what we should wear, how do we see ourselves? Do we base our reactions to others on what they think about us, what others have said about us, what we feel when we look in the mirror? Or do we step out with battle wounds from co-workers, children, spouses, whomever and show the world that I am confident in my plumage (as haggard as it may look sometimes). The confidence of Mr. Hotstuff Peacock comes from inside himself, not what he looks like on the outside. We are to be anxious over nothing (believe me I’m preaching to my own stressaholic self, I’m thinking of starting a support group). God created the birds of the air and the flowers of the field. Whether in full bloom, or when missing a few feathers. God still loves them. How much more does he care for us when we are missing a few feathers?

So my challenge for us is this. Step out with your feathers as they are, not being anxious, but confident that the God who allows flowers and birds to have their bad days, Loves you even more!

Praying Blessings for you and your family this week,

Amber