By, Linda Lacour Hobar
"Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap,
nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them.
Are ye not much better than they?
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?"
Matthew 6:26-27
I recently purchased a wreath for my front door. I knew upon doing so that I was inviting the sparrows to nest there. But I took my chances; hung the wreath; and kept my eye out for the birds—hoping that our front door traffic would deter them.
Wouldn’t you know, the first time we went out of town, and ignored our tiny wing-ed friends, a couple of sparrows built their nest at the top of the wreath on my front door! I must say—they did a great job. The nest was beautiful! It was soft on the inside, sturdy on the outside, and protected from the rain by our front porch.
Way to go little birds! However, every time we open and close the front door, we would rattle the nest rather violently! If eggs were going to be laid there, they’d surely fall and shatter on impact!
So, being the bird lover that I am, I took it upon myself to grab a ladder and carefully move the nest. (Of course, I needed a ladder. Short girl here!)
Oh, the clatter and chatter and the scolding I received from my feathery friends, as they watched in horror from a nearby tree! The sparrows chewed me out—in their own foul language (ha ha ha)—for moving their nest to a safer location near our garage. I didn’t know I was about to learn a lesson from the sparrows.
Throughout the ordeal, I tried talking to my little friends to assure them I had only their best interests in mind. I wanted them to trust me and recognize that I knew of a better, safer place to raise a family. Their response was predictable. They darted; they dove; they stared me down, and they kept going back to the place where they first decided to build!
It was about that time that I realized the Lord would have me learn a lesson from the sparrows. I couldn’t help but see myself in these fitful little birds. How many times does God move my nest—with my best interests in mind? How many times do I carry on in protest and return to the place where God clearly didn’t want me? I’m afraid that the answer is, a lot! I’m not much different than those little birds. I so easily balk and squawk at the One who knows what’s best for me.
I’m keeping my eye on these birds—hoping they’ll discover where I moved their nest. So far, they’re still mad at me, which makes me wonder how long I stay mad at God for his acts of lovingkindness that I’m too blind to see.
How about you? Is there something you could learn as a lesson from the sparrows? Try not to cackle too loud and too long at the Lord when He moves you from one circumstance to another. Chances are, He knows what’s best for your nest.
*Linda Lacour Hobar, author of The Mystery of History, is a passionate follower of Jesus Christ, a genuine “people-person”, and a fan of comfortable high-heels. Through homeschooling her children, and service as a missionary, she discovered a deep love for world history where the famous and the infamous have left their mark in time.
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