Issue 1751 Nodding Bird Faith June 16, 2025
I remember a moment from my childhood. I was a small child, and we were visiting friends of my parents when a flash of movement by a glass of water caught my eye, and I paused to look.
Right there inside the living room, a brightly colored bird took a drink and then looked up. I was fascinated.
A moment later, he took another drink. It happened again a few moments later. Over and over again, the nodding bird tipped its beak into the glass, then popped up again, swaying back and forth slightly, and repeated the process. I quickly understood that it wasn’t a real bird, but it held my interest nonetheless.
I could have watched all day, and the process would have been repeated almost endlessly. Much later, I learned that the nodding bird was made of brightly colored glass and was mechanical. The laws of physics, with temperature and differentials in the liquid contained in the glass tube, were at play.
Nodding birds (or bobbing birds) were invented in China in the early 1900s and patented in the US in the mid-1940s. These “drinking” birds reached the height of their popularity in the 1960s, reappearing for a while in the 1970s.
I’ve not seen one in years, and I suspect many younger people have never seen one. Apparently, someone decided that there was danger if the thin glass tube broke and the liquids escaped.
I digress… back to the “bird” I was watching.
The glass would never be empty, the bird would never be filled or fly away, and before long, I would have tired of the spectacle and looked at something else.
I wonder if that’s how we treat our faith. We go through the motions of drinking from the Living Water and look up as if to move into action. Then we repeat the process endlessly, never slaking our thirst or doing anything.
Meanwhile, the hurting people of the world watch the spectacle of our “religion,” seeing no change in us and no hope. Seeing nothing, they move on in their search for comfort, hope, and answers.
Do you have a nodding bird faith? Or is your faith an integral part of your everyday life?
Is your faith in your relationship with Jesus, or are you just nodding your head towards the well of religion and looking pretty?
Come and drink your fill from the fountain of true faith
For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
Revelation 7:17
Until next time, may you drink deeply from the well of Living Water and may others be drawn to the peace, hope, and joy it gives you. May you be continuously transformed into the very image of Christ.
Be blessed
Hallelu Yah / Praise God
Kevin
Gleanings From The Word – Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life.
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All contents, “Gleanings From The Word” and “Experience an Extraordinary God in Ordinary Life,” are © 2001, 2025 K.F. “Kevin” Corbin, Gleanings From The Word.
Unless otherwise noted, “Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”