Birds in my house

I'm so glad to be linking up to Virtual Coffee with Amy today!

Over my cup of steaming black currant tea with a touch of honey, I want to tell you that in the five years we've lived in our house, a bird has flown in three times. Twice in the last week. Once just a minute ago. The thing is, a little sparrow sits on a bush by the front door, and if the front door happens to open and someone is coming up the walk at the same time, the visitor scares him and he flies right in! This just happened because I saw my mom coming up the walk, so I opened the front door before she got to it.

In flew my little friend who zoomed like lightning right into the shut window at the back of my house. He bounced to the floor behind my couch and I so hoped he was alive! But when I crept over there, he popped up off the floor and then, in a panic, reattempted to fly out that shut window over and over. So sad. There is something kind of scary about having a bird in your house. They are so unpredictable and fast! Also, I couldn't really help him find a way out. He just kept flying from one shut window to the next, family room to kitchen, bashing his head each time. Was it more painful for him or for me to watch this!? It took a few minutes for me to usher him out the door, which had been standing wide open. I was trying to softly speak to him so he wouldn't be in such a panic. But I don't think little sparrows understand empathy, really. He was such a small and fragile little thing. So afraid of me, he had no idea how much I wanted to help him.

Do you feel like that little bird sometimes? I do.

There are times when I just don't know my path. I am unsure of my place and my purpose on days. Or weeks. I fly into windows that look good from where I'm sitting. But they're not the right path for me. Maybe it's the wrong communication path, the wrong discipline path, the wrong priority path. The shut windows that look great are not God's best for me. Sometimes it's a little scary. Sometimes I feel panicky. Sometimes I keep flying into the same window, so certain it is the way to go. And it's not.

Jesus, who cares for me more than any sparrow, awaits. He speaks quiet empathy and love. His door is standing quite wide open. The closed windows are paths to my entrapment. His path is the one to freedom. How painful it is for Him to watch me bash my head over and over, his voice drowned out by my busyness and self-reliance. Perhaps more painful for Him than for me.

So friends, today that sparrow has reminded me that God's words are a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. His words - reading them and listening for them - are the salve for my bruised head, and the guidance I need to find His best, His freedom.

I'm offering a simple prayer for you today that you'd hear His whispers of guidance, and find the open door you've been seeking. Have a blessed Tuesday.

Aren't two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father's consent. But even the hairs of your head have all been counted. Don't be afraid therefore; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Matthew 10:29-31

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.

Psalm 119:105

Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”

Isaiah 30:21