Zoo Animals
Zoo animals are always disappointing to me. Whenever I hope to hear a lion roar I usually don't, and the big dangerous animals are never close enough to truly appreciate. One time I was four feet away from a rhino. That was exciting. It wasn't much different than being four feet away from a cow, but a cow isn't nearly as fierce or exotic.
Zoo animals have taught me that some animals simply aren't meant to be in captivity. Monkeys are the exception the rule. They seem to thrive anywhere. Giraffes and elephants don't seem to care either. I have always noticed that it is the lions and the bears that always look bored. It might be because they are lazy anyway, or beacause of the huge moat that separates them from their prey (us, the visitors).
In the wild they may or may not act any differently. When given their natural surroundings they might feel more at home and feel more like roaring a little. After all, you can never take the "wild" out of a wild animal. Is it possible that an animal raised in captivity would know that it didn't belong there? Would they know that they weren't truly home even though they had all they needed? I think that some animals would.
Let's use ourselves as an example. From the time we are born we are born into captivity. We are born into a sinful nature that we never really escape. How many of us think about that? How many people do we know who are like the zoo animals thinking their exhibit is their home? After all they have all they could ever want. So why would they want more. Part of being a Christian is realizing that this "exhibit" of life is not our home. We weren't intended to be captured by sin. We were never meant to be zoo like for display purposes only. We weren't meant to inhabit a kingdom. Much like the zoo animals were meant to inhabit a wild kingdom.
Once we realize that we aren't meant to be here, can we roar about it?
Zoo animals have taught me that some animals simply aren't meant to be in captivity. Monkeys are the exception the rule. They seem to thrive anywhere. Giraffes and elephants don't seem to care either. I have always noticed that it is the lions and the bears that always look bored. It might be because they are lazy anyway, or beacause of the huge moat that separates them from their prey (us, the visitors).
In the wild they may or may not act any differently. When given their natural surroundings they might feel more at home and feel more like roaring a little. After all, you can never take the "wild" out of a wild animal. Is it possible that an animal raised in captivity would know that it didn't belong there? Would they know that they weren't truly home even though they had all they needed? I think that some animals would.
Let's use ourselves as an example. From the time we are born we are born into captivity. We are born into a sinful nature that we never really escape. How many of us think about that? How many people do we know who are like the zoo animals thinking their exhibit is their home? After all they have all they could ever want. So why would they want more. Part of being a Christian is realizing that this "exhibit" of life is not our home. We weren't intended to be captured by sin. We were never meant to be zoo like for display purposes only. We weren't meant to inhabit a kingdom. Much like the zoo animals were meant to inhabit a wild kingdom.
Once we realize that we aren't meant to be here, can we roar about it?
posted by Ben at 8:00 PM
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