The Third Ostrich

I was just over it.

Not one thing in particular. Everything.

Too much news. Too many crises. Too many tragedies. Too many opinions. Too many people yelling at each other and calling it a conversation.

And voices within the Church seemed to be pulling in a hundred different directions. Every day brought a new controversy to examine, another accusation to consider, a different prophecy to evaluate, a conflicting opinion to sort through, and fresh outrage demanding a response.

Before long, it felt like a constant stream of competing voices all vying for our attention, loyalty, and emotional energy.

And then there was politics.

I’ve joked for years that “poly” means many and “ticks” are blood-sucking, disease-ridden creatures. The government does seem infested. And that’s why we pray all the time that God will raise up righteous leaders. 

But ticks themselves may have been my last straw. I sat in disbelief as I read that there's been an explosive rise and escalating threat in Lone Star tick bites causing people to become allergic to red meat. “Really?”

I found myself wanting to stick my head in the sand and just hope the whole mess sorted itself out.

The problem is that ignoring problems doesn’t stop them. 

The enemy doesn’t stop lying because we stop paying attention.

He doesn’t stop stealing, killing, and destroying because we’d rather not think about it.

Paul & Peter warn believers to be alert:

“lest Satan should take advantage of us; for we are not ignorant of his devices.”  — 2 Corinthians 2:11

“Keep a cool head. Stay alert. The Devil is poised to pounce, and would like nothing better than to catch you napping. Keep your guard up.” — 1 Peter 5:8 

God never called us to live with our heads in the sand.

For nearly two thousand years, the ostrich has been the symbol of people who ignore uncomfortable truths. 

Ostriches don’t actually bury their heads in the sand. But the Roman naturalist, Pliny the Elder, observed that when an ostrich thrusts its head into a bush, it foolishly believes their whole body is hidden.

Ostriches will also flatten themselves to the ground as danger approaches. From a distance, their heads seem to disappear. 

The metaphor survived because it described something we recognized in ourselves. The ostrich became a symbol of denial, avoidance, and pretending problems aren’t there.

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We all have a tendency to avoid things we’d rather not face.

And much of the modern Church has adopted that approach. 

“It doesn’t matter. God is in control.”

“We’re getting raptured out of here anyway.”

“Christians shouldn’t be involved in culture.”

“Only spiritual things matter.”

But if Jesus taught us to pray, “Your Kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” then what part of earth was He excluding?

Families?

Schools?

Business?

Media?

Arts?

Government?

The Kingdom of God was never meant to retreat from the world. It was meant to transform it. 

“Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world.” — John 17:18

As more believers have awakened to their responsibility to engage culture, influence society, and understand the times, many have begun to take their heads out of the sand.

But as many overcome the First Ostrich syndrome, a Second Ostrich has raised its head.

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This ostrich isn’t hiding from what he sees. He’s consumed by it.

The First Ostrich says, “I don’t want to see.”

The Second Ostrich says, “I need to see everything.”

His days are filled with headlines, podcasts, videos, predictions, controversies, accusations, opinions, and outrages. What began as a desire to stay informed slowly becomes an obsession with staying updated.

Before long, he is spending more time reacting to the noise of the world than responding to the voice of God.

His head isn’t buried in the sand. His head is being blown apart by information overload.

Instead of shutting out information, he drowns in it.

Instead of disengagement, he suffers from distraction.

Instead of being absent, he is overwhelmed.

The First Ostrich refuses to look. The Second Ostrich cannot stop looking.

The First Ostrich misses what matters because he ignores it. The Second Ostrich misses what matters because he sees everything except it.

Both lose sight of what matters most.

That’s why we need a Third Ostrich.

The Third Ostrich sees what is happening around him, but he is even more aware of what God is doing beyond it.

As Paul wrote:

“While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” — 2 Corinthians 4:18

The Third Ostrich has his eyes open. He pays attention. He does not deny what is seen. He simply refuses to make it ultimate.

He sees the headlines, but he also sees the Kingdom.

He sees the battles, but he knows Who wins the war.

He sees the problems, but he also sees the promises.

He sees the storm, but he keeps his eyes on Jesus.

Like so many in the Bible, he is deeply aware of the circumstances around him and even more deeply aware of God’s prevailing power and purposes. 

📜 The sons of Issachar understood the times and knew what Israel should do.

🌾 Joseph saw the famine coming, yet he understood God’s purposes and prepared faithfully for what lay ahead.

🏛️ Daniel understood the culture around him, but he also understood that God’s Kingdom would outlast every earthly kingdom, so he remained faithful in Babylon.

🏗️ Nehemiah knew the walls were broken and knew the enemies were real. He heard the threats. He endured the criticism. He saw the rubble. Yet in the midst of it all, Nehemiah kept building.

👑 Esther knew the danger was real. One wrong step could cost her life. She felt the weight of the risk. She heard Mordecai’s challenge, but she also heard the decree. 

Fear filled the land. God’s people faced destruction. Yet Esther trusted God’s purpose and stepped into her calling.

✝️ Jesus saw the cross before Him. He felt the agony pressing in. He wrestled in Gethsemane. He knew the betrayal, scourging, and the nails were coming. 

Yet He also saw the joy beyond the suffering, the salvation beyond the sacrifice, and the resurrection beyond the grave. So He kept walking toward Jerusalem.

None of them buried their heads. None of them lost their heads.

They saw what others saw. But they also saw what others missed.

They understood that the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

They kept their heads. And they kept the faith.

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The Third Ostrich is alert without being anxious. Informed without being obsessed. Engaged without being engulfed.

As Paul wrote:

“Those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them.”  — 1 Corinthians 7:31

What a picture for our day.

Influence the world.

Serve the world.

Pray for the world.

But don’t become engrossed in it.

The First Ostrich ignores what is seen.

The Second Ostrich is consumed by what is seen.

The Third Ostrich is anchored in a Kingdom that cannot be shaken.

He knows that Christ is still King.

He knows that the Kingdom is still advancing.

He knows that God’s promises are still true.

He knows Who wins the war.

So today:

Don’t bury your head.

Don’t lose your head.

Keep your head.

Keep the faith.

Be the Third Ostrich.