Jumping In to the Dawn Chorus

“'Let not your heart be troubled,' His tender word I hear, and resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears; Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me...”—gospel hymn, 'His Eye Is On the Sparrow,' Civilla D. Martin

This good Journey is about a lot of things, but it is always filled with truth. One is this: It's perfectly OK to acknowledge the fact that no Christ-one is immune to everyday-anxieties. Life happens. What matters is that they not become a place where we camp out. 

Jesus totally gets this daily wrestling match. He even used the somewhat surprising example of tiny birds—instead of bold and brave creatures like lions and tigers and bears—to encourage His first followers with something timeless about (not) being anxious.

Birds, as it turns out, are underrated. There they are right in the Gospels, and there they are today testing the wisdom of environmental scientists by singing up a storm just about every early morning for about three hours, from spring until migration season—what has been called the “dawn chorus.” There are numerous theories and exhaustive studies out there as to why birds might be doing what they do, but one thing just about every expert agrees on is that sparrows and their feathered friends are communicating all sorts of things—each species with its own voice and melody, and even coloration of melody, so that each is unique and distinctly heard by others in the forest.

And, perhaps by God as well, and not just in theory...

“He sends forth springs into the valleys; their waters run among the mountains. Beside them the birds of the heavens have their nests; they sing among the branches….O Lord, how many and varied are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; The earth is full of Your riches and Your creatures….They all wait for You to give them their food in its appointed season. You give it to them, they gather it up; You open Your hand, they are filled and satisfied with good things.”

—Psalm 104:10-12; 24; 27-28 Amplified Classic

Lions, tigers, and bears are bold and cool, but the "who, me?" sparrows and other singing birds seem to have down the importance of regularly communicating some simple things to their Creator. Things that can prove helpful in responding to any and all anxious moments that may come our way: That it's always a good idea to start the day by jumping in to a "dawn chorus"... 

• Simple gratitude for life and breath, expressed as a daily declaration of dependence
• Celebrate the promise of a new day, hope rising anew with the sunrise (even if it's cloudy)
• Be thankful for a clean slate, no matter what yesterday was like, and new opportunities awaiting
• Rejoice in the fact that darkness is always sent fleeing by glorious Light
• Remember anew that the faithfulness of God's presence has been, is still, and will always be very much all around in the routine of the day ahead.

It's good to know that this isn't all just about a bunch of singing sparrows, blue jays, cardinals and chickadees. His eye is fixed on each one of us, too, as we "sing," each with our own distinct voice and melody that the One who fearfully and wonderfully created us loves to hear. Even better to know is that when He answers, it's always in (His) perfect timing, even if sometimes with a melody of goodness that we weren’t expecting, and always, always accompanied by a heavenly chorus of those who've gone before:

"Keep going!"

"Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus."

—Philippians 4:6-7, New Living Translation