God made a vast variety of beautiful and interesting birds. One is the Whydah from South Africa. During mating season, the male grows long black feathers two to three times longer than his body. Eager to mate, he hovers in front of a female, flapping his wings while his tail feathers dangle. Oooo-wee, look at me. And I can sing, too. If the lady isn’t sufficiently impressed, he turns abusive. If she gives in, it’s a short affair and off he goes to make another conquest.
After her brief fling with Romeo, the female whydah goes on the hunt for a suitable nest. Taking lessons from the cuckoo and cowbird, the whydah female furtively lays her eggs in another bird’s nest and takes off. She never carries the responsibility of hatching, protecting, feeding or teaching her chick/s to fly. She leaves that to the host bird, who must work harder to provide for her own chicks as well as the one abandoned in her nest.
Whydahs have been spotted in Los Angeles and Orange County, as well as Hawaii. There’s a good chance Southern Texas and Florida will see them soon.
Some people behave like whydah birds, abusive when they don’t get their way, using others for their own pleasure, shirking responsibility for what results from their self-centered, “self-conscience” behavior. As a society, we excuse, condone, and even applaud it. We idolize movie and sports stars who behave like whydah birds, battering their spouses, bragging about their conquests, posturing for cameras. We strive to separate in our minds the bad behavior from the great talent we love to watch, all so we can continue to attend their movies and sporting events without excuse.
Thus, those lifestyles become the norm. Bad behavior is twittered and tweeted, and spreads. Our thinking changes. Our lives change. We begin to recognize the same kind of destructive behavior in our towns, neighborhoods and families. Casual sex, abortion, abuse, abandonment, struggling single parents, cycles of heartache and misery.
Sin often looks exciting and wonderful in the beginning, and then causes pain, brokenness and ruined lives in the aftermath. Hopes and dreams fly away, just like the whydah bird after his tail feathers fall off.
Don’t be fooled by the whydah birds of this world. Look to the Lord who has a beautiful plan for your life. And if you have been fooled, don’t despair. The Lord offers real love, grace, hope, healing and restoration through His Son, Jesus Christ.