This is a revised version of an article I posted in 2020. This revised article is also available as a podcast episode on Eternal Purpose Podcast. You may access it via my website podcast page or by visiting Spotify or Anchor.
https://open.spotify.com/show/23NbWtwZBdGkm1LVIpFtu3
https://open.spotify.com/episode/02z8M2t5FddhQGrHvCPsFe?si=V4lTaL_GTAi6qTKM27RojA
https://anchor.fm/francee-strain/episodes/The-Sparrow-Keeper-e1l5ddm
I’m a birdwatcher. I peek out the windows, and I check on the happenings in my yard. Certain birdcalls send me running outdoors to catch the action. At times, you will find me with my mouth agape as I observe spectacular scenes unfolding before me.
Several of my hobbies revolve around wild birds. Some days, I get a finger cramp pressing the shutter button on my camera. I use my photographs in a multitude of ways. I have a feather collection. Bird figurines adorn my tabletops, shelves, fireplace mantel, and piano. There are framed bird prints hanging in various rooms of my house. I have bird identification books and a magazine subscription—this way, I can gaze at other people’s bird photographs and further my bird education at the same time. I’m not sure where my fascination with birds came from. I remember checking out bird guide books from the elementary school, and I sat at my bedroom desk tracing over the photos. Birds of paradise were always my favorite. But after that, I don’t remember too much of anything else related to birds—until several years ago—I acquired a birdbath. At that point, I moved beyond being a bird watcher—I became a bird keeper.
A keeper is one who has the job not only to watch but also to protect and maintain what or whom is being cared for. Daily, I have taken to caring for the birds. I water them, fill up bird feeders with birdseed, and I cook up batches of hummingbird nectar. I chase away cats that are looking for a feathery meal, and I shoo away deer who believe the bird feeders exist for their benefit. Thus, I have become a sparrow keeper, along with being a keeper to more than thirty-five other types. It brings great joy to my heart to be able to share in the lives of these beautiful creatures.
When we look at sparrows, “beautiful” may not be the first word that comes to our mind. We’re probably not impressed by their appearance or wowed by their size. We might think they’re a dime a dozen and are nothing in comparison to showy peacocks or powerful birds of prey. But, the Bible says not one sparrow is forgotten by God or falls to the ground without His knowledge. And we humans are told not to fear because we are of more value than many sparrows.1 Think of it! If God cares for each one of these little creatures, how much more must He care for us?
But, how do we understand this when life seems to be flying out of control in many directions at once, like a flock of birds flushing out of the field? Right now, there’s noise, confusion, scrambling, blurring, fleeing, crying out, and fear. Things are startling us out of our peace and rest, interrupting us as we try to go about our normal lives, causing us to question what is happening and what to do next. We don’t understand the outside forces that are bearing down on us and making our hearts anxious and pounding. But, I want to encourage us not to fear. God’s eyes are on the sparrows, and He is watching over us, too.
There are songs that talk about God being a sparrow watcher. And when I think about this concept, I realize He’s not just a sparrow watcher, He’s a sparrow keeper. He’s not simply an observer of what’s taking place in our lives, He is involved in our care. He fulfills the definition of a keeper as He guards and cares for, protects and maintains. As we live our lives in the midst of a difficult and fallen world, He abides, faithful.
Indeed, we are told the very hairs of our heads are numbered.2 God is aware of each of us and is paying attention to the details. From our safe little perches and our huge falls to the ground in this big, overwhelming world that’s fraught with danger, He remains vigilant. When gale force winds, seasons of drought, firestorms, and famine come, He speaks peace. When we are separated from the flock, lost or abandoned, He’s omnipresent. When our feathers get ruffled, when we smack into the window while looking at the reflection of something we think we want, or when we get blown off course in the high winds, He sees. He knows. He remains steadfast. And He is available to help us recover. No one else can meet each need or save our very souls except Him. He has provided Himself, the living water and the bread of life. He guards souls from eternal death and is capable of keeping them in life. He is omnipotent and everlasting.
Yes, God is the world maker, star namer, and soul saver. He is the sparrow watcher and the sparrow keeper. From everlasting to everlasting, He is God.
Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me!
For my soul trusts in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge,
Until these calamities have passed by.
I will cry out to God Most High,
To God who performs all things for me.
He shall send from heaven and save me;
He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. Selah
God shall send forth His mercy and His truth.3
NOTES
1 See Luke 12:6.
2 See Luke 12:7.
3 Psalm 57:1–3
Scriptures taken from the New King James Version of the Holy Bible, ©1982 by Thomas Nelson.
©Text and photos Francee Strain, July 12, 2022. Original version posted August 16, 2020.
Come Unto Me Ministries 