His Eye is on the Sparrow

I was reading Matthew 10 this morning and it reminded me of something that happened when I was working as a young home health nurse in the 1990's.

Matthew 10:29-31: Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows.

I was going to visit a very cantakerous old man we will call Mr. B. And that afternoon when I got to Mr. B's house, I saw a bird lying on its back on his porch, its feet curled, looking for all intents and purposes like it was dead.

And it broke my heart... literally broke my heart in pieces... which surprised me because normally I wouldn't care so much about a bird. Not that a dead bird isn't sad; it's just not something that should hurt my heart to that extent.

When I find that something causes more emotion than it normally should in a given situation, I sometimes assume it's the Holy Spirit living inside me Who is mourning or feeling the strong emotion, and that's what I thought that afternoon... the Holy Spirit loved that bird and is sad over its death.

At any rate, I stepped over the poor dead bird, went inside, and said to my patient, "You have a dead bird on your porch."

"Yeah," he said, "A sparrow ran into the door this morning and killed itself. Go kick it off the porch."

I was like, kick it off?!? My heart was still really sad over the bird. I did not want to kick it off the porch and I told him so. So he grumbled and got to his very unsteady feet. "I'll kick it off," he told me, heading for the door.

I'm alarmed at this point that he'll fall off the porch right with the bird. "No! I'll do it," I tell him.

So I went back outside and gingerly pushed the dead bird with my toe toward the edge of the porch.

And that bird got up and flew away!

I kid you not. I wouldn't lie to you. The bird flew away like it had never been lying there dead on its back.

I totally believe God raised that bird from the dead.

Now maybe the bird was just knocked out, but Mr. B said it had been lying there since that morning and we were well into the afternoon. And it was a hot day.

I felt the love and grief of the Holy Spirit for that bird and I sincerely believe He raised it from the dead to fly another day.

If God the Father loves a bird so much and we have more value than many sparrows, what have we to worry about? Ever?

So I sing because I'm happy! I sing because I'm free! His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.