God Spoke To Me Through a Hamburger…
God once spoke to me through a hamburger. It wasn't through an audible voice or a strange dream or vision. He rather used ordinary means to quietly echo His Word to my soul.
I can remember it like it was yesterday. Years ago at a youth group cookout we were enjoying food, fellowship, and great weather. Our youth pastor served as grill master and chaperone for the evening.
As I approached for seconds, I was met with a laugh and a quick rush of air. A burger went flying through the air and into the field as the grill master declared, "I guess that one is for the birds!" Between the responsibilities of grill master and chaperone, one of the burgers had been left to burn.
It was in this moment my soul heard familiar words, "Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?" (Matthew 6:26). I was stunned.
God cares for the sparrows and feeds them through ordinary means like a distracted grill master. Jesus was very quick to point out something obvious: birds don't sow, reap, or gather and yet they still find lunch. Birds don't have Walmarts, pantries, or drive-thrus, yet they are fed. How much more should Jesus' followers, being more valuable than sparrows, trust God for provision even when it seems impossible?
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Not only was the value of human life affirmed, but a theological truth was illustrated. The mystery of God's sovereignty and human responsibility was on full display. He used even human absent mindedness in a mindful and purposeful way. Even charred meat is under His control!
But Jesus' bird watching lesson wasn't simply a grand theological illustration. He had very practical application. Jesus used the birds as a comfort for the anxious heart, “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?" (Matthew 6:25).
The lesson is clear: since God provides for the birds, we can trust Him to provide for us. God feeds untold numbers of birds through dropped french fries and old hamburgers. How might God provide in unexpected ways for you?
God spoke an invitation through a hamburger. God also extends the same invitation to all of us, "cast all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you" (1 Peter 5:7). God cares for us!
He cares for us more than birds or burgers. He cares for us enough to come to dwell as a baby in a manger, to live a sinless life in our place, and to die on a cross for our sins. He cares for us so much that three days later He rose again from the dead to destroy the power of the greatest anxiety in life: the fear of death (Hebrews 2:14-15). He promises eternal life to all who place their trust in Him.
Hamburgers, birds, and an empty tomb are all reminders of one simple truth: God cares for us! God desires to remind us of this, and much more, through His Word. May the Holy Spirit open our ears to hear.