Job 39:13-19
The ostrich flaps her wings futilely— all those beautiful feathers, but useless! She lays her eggs on the hard ground, leaves them there in the dirt, exposed to the weather, Not caring that they might get stepped on and cracked or trampled by some wild animal. She’s negligent with her young, as if they weren’t even hers. She cares nothing about anything. She wasn’t created very smart, that’s for sure, wasn’t given her share of good sense. But when she runs, oh, how she runs, laughing, leaving horse and rider in the dust. (Message)
My loving Father is holy, righteous and just in all of His ways. In His manifold wisdom (that's beyond human comprehension!) He decided in eternity past that I'll be with this set of characteristics for a purpose.
Could it be that I have wings to somehow classify me among birds? And in this crowd of birds, God opened my eyes to see just how different I am.
Can it be possible that the Lord may have classified some as engineers, pastors, etc, and yet designed them to do more or something else for God's glory?
That instead of crying for having useless wings unlike most 'normal' and usual birds, I should better look for other qualities, that when I act them out so naturally, I do it with joy and ease - much to the envy of those who do it with so much effort.
I may feel deprived of other strengths, but those qualities can be asked for in prayer. (James 1:5) For other people, those same qualities have come naturally, but with me, I have to pray intensely and work at it. In the same way, my effortless strengths may come through hard work and intense prayer on others.
(Maybe the reason that I am aware and bothered by a certain lack is because God’s calling me to strive for it, on top of what I already have.)
Either way, in each case, God is always good.
I can trust God's heart that I can be successful and prosperous serving the Lord with these strengths and abilities He has given me. And I will not slack down because God deserves the best. I will continue to multiply the talents He has given me so that when He calls me into account, He'll say, "We'll done, good and faithful servant! Come and share My happiness." (Matthew 25:21)
-=w=-
The wings of the ostrich flap happily, but they are not like the feathers of the stork. The ostrich lays its eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand. It does not stop to think that a foot might step on them and crush them; it does not care that some animal might walk on them. The ostrich is cruel to its young, as if they were not even its own. It does not care that its work is for nothing, because God did not give the ostrich wisdom; God did not give it a share of good sense. But when the ostrich gets up to run, it is so fast that it laughs at the horse and its rider. (NCV)
The wings of the ostrich flap with joy, but are they the pinions and plumage of a stork? For she leaves her eggs on the ground, and lets them be warmed on the soil. She forgets that a foot might crush them, or that a wild animal might trample them. She is harsh with her young, as if they were not hers; she is unconcerned about the uselessness of her labor. For God deprived her of wisdom, and did not impart understanding to her. But as soon as she springs up, she laughs at the horse and its rider. (NET)
The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, though they cannot compare with the wings and feathers of the stork. She lays her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand, unmindful that a foot may crush them, that some wild animal may trample them. She treats her young harshly, as if they were not hers; she cares not that her labor was in vain, for God did not endow her with wisdom or give her a share of good sense. Yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at horse and rider. (NIV)
An ostrich proudly flaps her wings, but not because she loves her young. She abandons her eggs and lets the dusty ground keep them warm. And she doesn't seem to worry that the feet of an animal could crush them all. She treats her eggs as though they were not her own, unconcerned that her work might be for nothing. I myself made her foolish and without common sense. But once she starts running, she laughs at a rider on the fastest horse. (CEV)