WATCHWORD:
Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns,
and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Are you not of more value than they?
Matthew 6:26
Meditation:
Reprise: Happiness Is a Bird
Happiness? What happened to your happiness when the pandemic was in full force, and isolation and quarantine began? Did you leave it out there in the parking lot? Perhaps you stood at your window looking out, longing for the return of that orphan, your happiness, that you knew was just out there, shivering in the rain, all alone.
Perhaps you recall it differently, more like this; happiness slowly trickled away when the realization hit that going out to eat was not an option. Maybe you just finished a book, and you were at a loss because the library was closed, and now what are you going to read? That trip to Wisconsin? Forget it. Having the gang over for dinner? Forget that, too. Going to church? Wait a minute, that was then, this is now.
As I write this meditation, rain has started to fall and they are predicting heavy showers throughout the day. I love a rainy day. It brings me a sense of happiness and maybe relief that so much on my to-do list will have to wait till tomorrow, and I am one of the really great procrastinators. I now have a reason. I love a rainy day, it gives me that spark of happiness.
Out on a tree limb there’s a little bird that has been watching me over the last couple of days, when I have stepped outside to tend to something on the grill. It’s just a little bird with a red cap and I’m sure my neighbor, Diane, could tell me exactly what that bird is.
Now it’s hopping around on the limb and causing me to smile because that bird seems to love the rain as much as I. Maybe he’s a messenger telling me to get over whatever is dragging me down, put yesterday’s worries behind, recognize the multitude of reasons I have to be happy, before they gang up and bite me on the you-know-what. Happiness.
Maybe happiness is a bird. Flitting around, dancing on your deck, singing you songs and making you smile. Maybe happiness is a bird, pretty to look at, pretty to imagine, right there within your grasp, adding a shine to your day. Maybe happiness is a bird in the now, not in the past. Happiness in the past is just a memory, it’s not happiness. Happiness is the present, a Praise the Lord moment, it’s the reason you smile, and others are brightened and lifted up. Happiness is a bird on your deck, in your heart.
I’m not a Pollyanna, neither are you. I’m not a droopy-drawers, either, and neither are you. Here is a cliché we all can live by, given by our common Father: “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35. Think about that, really think it through. It is a truth that turns things up-side down. Instead looking for that remembered happiness in the long ago for yourself, Jesus tells us to seek and spread happiness around to others, now. The secret to finding happiness is giving it away.
Thank you, Lord, for we know that the Joy you give us, as we give happiness to others, is genuine, and deep and worry-defeating. Happiness is a bird in our hand, in our heart.
I believe that the Lord made birds to tell us that we are of value. Amen.
Thoughts on Birds and Happiness:
From Martin Luther (1510) – That little bird has chosen his shelter. Above it, are the stars and the deep heaven of worlds. Yet he is rocking himself to sleep without caring for tomorrow’s lodging, calmly clinging to his little twig, and leaving God to think for him.
One bird to another — Perched on a tree branch, two birds were observing passers-by rushing from one place to another. Looking at their faces, one bird asked the other, “Why is man so full of worries and cares?” The other bird answered, “Maybe they don’t have a heavenly Father like we do.” Lesson to be learned.
Closing Prayer:
Lord, catch me off guard today. Surprise me with some moment of beauty or pain. So that, at least for the moment, I may be startled into seeing that you are here, in all your splendor, Always and everywhere. Barely hidden. Beneath. Beyond. Within this life, I breathe. Grant us compassion for others, courage to overcome our timidity, and strength to treasure the Peace. Your children, King of the Universe, You are Lord and Savior. Amen.
