THE ROAD RUNNER!!!

 ‘Roadrunner’ photo from PxHere.

A roadrunner bird ran across the road in front of my car the other day doing about 20 miles per hour. (It can actually run as fast as 25 MPH!)  It looked just like its cartoon character, ‘Roadrunner’ running away from the ‘Wiley Coyote’ on Looney Tunes!  (You can check out these crazy cartoons by clicking on the link below.)  I wondered why it didn’t fly?  Apparently, there are quite a few ‘flightless’ birds, the most commonly known is the ostrich.                                          

They reminded me of the phrase, ‘use it or lose it’.  These birds loose their ability to fly typically because they exist somewhere where they have no predators, like on an island.  Gradually as their need to fly lessens, they lose the ability to fly all together!  Not quite so for the roadrunner.  It can fly short distances because it still has plenty of predators on the ground like the raccoon, fox or hawks, but it has gradually become adept at running because its source of food is also on the ground.  
I was pleasantly surprised to see one here in Oklahoma because they primarily inhabit the arid and semi-arid regions of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.  They feed on lizards, scorpions and even snakes!  They need very little water, relying on the water from their moisture rich prey.  

As I age, (at this writing I am 81 years old) and am beginning to understand the phrase ‘use it or lose it’ as my body becomes less co-operative.  My wife and I notice that it is becoming increasingly difficult to stand from a sitting position or especially from the floor.  Exercise becomes crucial!  We have to use those muscles, so we don’t lose what we have!  In fact, one friend at the gym said to me, ‘at our age, (he is 91), it is exercise or die!” ‘ This fact is dramatically demonstrated by astronauts going into zero-gravity space.  Under this condition, without always working against gravity and using muscles just to stand up, astronauts come back to earth with wasted muscles.’  Psychology Today.  

I wrote this post because I love those cool roadrunners and the Looney Tune cartoons they made about them, but also so I could share some ‘GOOD NEWS! ‘The good news is that the phrase, ‘use it or lose it’ doesn’t apply to your ‘gifts and calling’!

‘For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.’  Romans 11:29. KJV.

In other words, God will not change His mind regarding the gifts He has given you and the calling or purpose on your life!  In fact, He expects you to use and enjoy them no matter how old you are.  Now that’s some GOOD NEWS!

SEE YOU AT THE GYM!

Looney Tunes/ Wile E. Coyote takes on the Road Runner/ Compilation/ Warner