One thing I do that has almost become a ritual is look through photos of plants, whether they are from my garden or somewhere else. Flowers, trees, water…just about anything in nature. I have tons of these photos on my phone. There is something so soothing and calming about looking at them. But beyond the calm is the sense of awe they stir in me.
Sometimes I find myself staring at the intricate details of
a flower, a leaf, a bird, or some other little thing in creation, and in my
little head trying to figure out: God, how did You create all of these?
Tonight, while scrolling through some old photos, I came across these from
earlier in the year, and they took me back to one beautiful spring surprise.
One day in early spring, I was outside cleaning my flower
beds and planting flowers when I noticed a strange-looking egg lying on the
ground. Immediately, something in me wanted to do what we used to do as
children: crack it open and see whether there was a living thing inside. Back
then, we often found lizard or wall gecko eggs, and sometimes, when we cracked one open, there was the tiniest little lizard inside.
Well…there are no lizards running around here, and
definitely no wall geckos. I had no idea what kind of egg this was. Thankfully,
I left it alone. A few days later, I discovered that a bird (or perhaps more
than one bird) had made a nest inside one of my hanging flower baskets. And
inside that nest were eight tiny, fragile eggs!
I was astonished to find the eight tiny, fragile eggs inside
my flower basket.
I later learned that the mysterious egg on the ground might have been pushed out of the nest by a cowbird, but I would never know for certain.
Anyway…eight eggs. Tick-tock. Time passed. Then one day, I
heard chirping. Those tiny eggs had become tiny birds! Somehow, all eight
hatched and survived. I was so excited that we went out and bought a bird
feeder and placed it near the hanging basket. In my mind, Mama Bird now had a
little neighborhood grocery store and a church! She could eat and, hopefully,
share some with the babies until they were strong enough to fly away.
The Bird feeder and the flower basket. Now they can have church and grocery side by side.
Looking at the pictures tonight, though, I found myself
thinking about something deeper. These little birds have no doctors. No houses.
No closets full of clothes. No bank accounts. No refrigerators stocked with
food. Yet God has already clothed them in His splendor. He gives them shelter.
He provides their food. He watches over them. They do not spend today worrying
about next week (I hope they do not!), yet they are cared for. The wonders of
El-Roi, the God who sees.
Whenever I went outside to check on the eggs and, later, the
baby birds, Mama Bird would quickly fly away. But she never really left. She
hovered nearby, watching. I would gently lower the hanging basket, peek at her
babies, and carefully water the flowers, making sure the water did not touch
the eggs or the little birds. All the while, Mama Bird remained somewhere
close, watching over her nest.
It reminded me of Isaiah 31:5: ‘Like birds hovering
overhead, the Lord Almighty will shield Jerusalem…’ I like to make that promise
personal: Like a bird hovering over its nest, the Lord Almighty will watch over
Chidi. Put your own name there. Sometimes we need to remind ourselves that the
God who watches over creation is also watching over us.
Jesus said:
‘Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or
store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much
more valuable than they?’ (Matthew 6:26).
Think about that. If God pays attention to a tiny bird
hidden inside a flower basket; if He knows when it needs food, designed it,
clothed it, sheltered it, and gave it the instinct to care for its young; how
much more does He care about you?
Maybe tonight you are carrying something heavy. Maybe there
is something you cannot figure out…yet. Maybe tomorrow holds questions you do
not have answers for. Perhaps the birds can remind us of this: we are being
watched over.
As we sleep tonight, may we rest in the assurance that we
have a loving God who hovers over us with His care and protection. May we trust
that He sees what concerns us, knows what we need, and will still be there when
morning comes. God is really good. Sometimes, all we have to do is slow down
long enough to look at the birds.
The tiny eggs had become tiny birds. 6 had flown away with Mama bird, leaving these 2 tiny ones, who also flew away the next day.
Look at the birds and remember: the God who watches over them is watching over you.
Garden & Reflections offers a glimpse into the experiences and everyday lessons that shape me beyond the therapy room. These personal reflections are shared thoughtfully while honoring the professional boundaries of the counseling relationship.