Thursday, October 10, 2013

Look at the Cedar Waxwing



Look at the birds in the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Mt 6: 25-27 

On a recent hike, Peggy and I watched a group of Cedar Waxwings dancing through the trees.  Peggy loves Cedar Waxwings.  I never really appreciated them until I got a closer look.  Now I share her appreciation of their beautiful and subtle soft coloring. I captured this one as it rested on a branch and watched its friends play.

I wanted this picture to decorate our house.  But, I discovered as I studied the image of the bird, my attention was shifting away from its decorative qualities to a powerful lesson, “Look at the birds in the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.”  All of a sudden, I realized how much I have been worrying about my new job, the new house, a new community, new staff and all that comes with starting over.  

If I put the picture up in my living room, what will I see the next time I look at it?   Will I be able to see the freedom of a bird playing in the Father’s kingdom and remind myself not to worry?  Or, will I look at that bird and say, “he doesn’t have a mortgage, college loans, car payments, insurance deductibles, grocery bills and all the other costs of life and family.”  I like to think I will see the freedom from worry.  But, it will take more than a picture to escape the worries of financial demands.

Who is Jesus kidding?  Even birds need to worry.  In a time of drought fruit trees do not produce a harvest.  If the Cedar Waxwings do not search for a new source of food, they will perish.  Birds and humans are all vulnerable to extreme conditions.  Worrying about the basic necessities of life, in many ways, keeps us alive. We all need to worry a bit.  The danger we face is allowing worry to consume us.  Then it becomes difficult to see the joy of playing in the Father’s kingdom.

The point of the lesson is that we cannot add a single hour to our day by worrying, but we can waste a lot of time doing it.  I have decided to keep my focus on the Cedar Waxwing when I look at this picture.  For this bird reminded me there is a time to worry and a time to dance in the trees.  Maybe, I’ll post this picture in my office, as well as my home.


I know all the birds of the air, and all that moves in the field is mine 

Psalm 50: 11