A group of quail is called a covey or a bevy. Then there's a brood of hens, a gaggle of geese and a colony of penguins. Here are some new ones on me -- a charm of finches, a dole of doves and a wisp of snipe. (Yes, you CAN go on a snipe hunt.) The loveliest, perhaps, are the pheasants when flushed from their cover; they are a bouquet of pheasant. Apparently some birds have a rotten reputation that I was not aware of; they huddle together as a deceit of lapwings and a murder of crows. Thank goodness for the plovers. They gather in a congregation.
When it comes to people, there is surely some truth to the cliche, "Birds of a feather flock together." Culture, age and affinity have a great deal to do with the way people associate. But what I find most enjoyable and noteworthy is the diversity that comes together around the gospel of Jesus. I see people of differing cultures relate as one around the faith and hope they share in Christ. I see unity among young and old, male and female, nerds and bohemians, forged by the Spirit they all possess in common. I love when I meet a believer for the first time in a far off place and we embrace each other like family.
Paul had quite the wisp of fellow workers. We hear of Timothy and Epaphroditus in today's text. We know he also ran with Luke and Silas, and Phoebe and Priscila. He had Jewish friends and Gentile friends. He hung with his peers and with the young punks. (Poor Demas; he flew the coop. Must have been a lapwing.) A diverse raft of ducks, and yet all seem to fly in the same way. They fly to one another when there's a need. They move easily from one habitat to another; the cause of the gospel is greater than their comfort. They expose themselves to dangerous snares, and find refuge in one another's nests. They rise on the thermals of God's love. They rejoice and sing -- oh, how they sing!
What sort of company do you keep? Be done with the deceit of charm and the murder of gossip. Find a congregation like Paul's. Bond across the diversities of outer display, the differences of color, of call, of preference for canyon or lake or seashore. Form a colony of heaven. Uncover the bouquet of joy that comes from living together under the wing of the Almighty. In time, we shall all mount up on wings as eagles.
Pray: God, who looks down from the precipice of heaven, lead me to a group of people that I can bless and be blessed by. Bring me to that brood which shares your holy values. Grant me a congregation I can sing with and soar with.
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