Beautiful morning – the doves are cooing, finches are singing and the quail are talking. Perfect time for sipping my coffee and praising the God of all creation.
I’ve been asked a number of times how much time I spend reading God’s Word each day and my answer is the same. “Each day varies. I read until I hear God speak to me something that I can live by that day.”
Oh, I’ve had times when I’ve sat down and read chapter after chapter because it was on some Bible reading chart somewhere and then closed the book and gone my way completely unaffected because I couldn’t remember what I had read – just words on a page. And then there have been the times when I have read one or two verses and it has changed me completely. In those times, I know that God is speaking directly to me.
That’s why watching the birds and hearing them sing in the morning means so much to me.
“So I tell you, don’t worry about the things you need to live—what you will eat, drink, or wear. Life is more important than food, and the body is more important than what you put on it. 26 Look at the birds. They don’t plant, harvest, or save food in barns, but your heavenly Father feeds them. Don’t you know you are worth much more than they are? 27 You cannot add any time to your life by worrying about it.
28 “And why do you worry about clothes? Look at the wildflowers in the field. See how they grow. They don’t work or make clothes for themselves. 29 But I tell you that even Solomon, the great and rich king, was not dressed as beautifully as one of these flowers. 30 If God makes what grows in the field so beautiful, what do you think he will do for you? It’s just grass—one day it’s alive, and the next day someone throws it into a fire. But God cares enough to make it beautiful. Surely he will do much more for you. Your faith is so small!” Matthew 6:25-30 ERV
Reading the Bible is a two-way conversation between the Father and His child. Sometimes when we talk to our kids we know they haven’t heard a word we’ve said. It’s been good council, but they’ve been distracted or focused on other things and they just don’t listen.
Then there are those times when our kids ask our advice and are ready to listen. We can share life experience, memories and impart our knowledge to them. Those times are so sweet!
The same holds true for God and His word. The answer to every question is contained in this book and He’s waiting to share. That’s why these verses in Matthew are so important to me.
There have been times, more than I care to remember, when I worried over what we would eat and where we would have our family live but God in His faithfulness always provided! Sometimes the provision came from the generosity of friends, other times were almost miraculous.
God provides!
The birds singing each morning is a reminder to me of the Father’s faithfulness and love. I hope you have a song in your heart this morning – it’s time to sing!