Don't Worry - Listen to the Birds

By Bill Gaultiere © 2008, 2010

I was thinking of Jesus’ words: “Don’t worry. Look at the birds… Your Heavenly Father cares for them. Aren’t you much more valuable than them?” (Matthew 6:25-26, PAR). (The Psalmist had a similar meditation that Jesus may have drawn from, Psalm 104:12, 17, 27-30).

And they inspired me to sit down and do some bird watching while I prayed today as I was alone with Jesus in the quiet for a few hours. As I watched and listened to what was going on above my head Jesus spoke to my heart.

Don’t misunderstand me. The Lord’s voice didn’t come to me like lightening filling the sky. And I didn’t see an angel. At first many things distracted me: lawnmowers and grass blowers, a cold wind blowing, my own concerns and worries. But I kept looking at the birds in the heavens (the lowest level of the kingdom of the heavens is the air right around us) and I kept listening.

I discovered that indeed I was alive in the Kingdom of God with the Trinity, the angels, Christ followers – ancient and present – and all of God’s creation, including the birds who were God’s messengers to me on this day.

Here’s what I heard Jesus whisper to me:

Don’t Worry: Listen to the Birds

Don’t worry: Look at the birds;

Trust my Father as they do,

Feeding each day from his hand.

~

Don’t worry: Listen to the birds;

Rest in my Word as they do,

Sitting quietly and alone on the Branch.

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Don’t worry: Learn from the birds;

Sing with my angels as they do,

Harmonizing with the choruses of heaven.

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Don’t worry: Live like the birds;

Fly with my Spirit as they do,

Responding to the currents of my Breath.

~

Don’t worry: Love like the birds;

Gather with my friends as they do,

Traveling in formation as my flock.

For more help overcoming worry read: Why the Birds Don’t Worry.

You can read my post, "Abba's Child", on my Soul Shepherding blog which I post on more regularly. You can sign up to receive the Soul Shepherding blog or the bi-monthly Christian Soul Care Devotional I write.

Thank you!

Bill
Director of Spiritual Formation Ministries
Crystal Cathedral

Jesus is My Refuge

On Palm Sunday Jesus wept over Jerusalem because the people didn’t recognize him (Luke 19:41). Later in Holy Week Jesus cried out for us all: “O how I have longed to gather you as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings!” (Matthew 23:37, paraphrase).

Do you desire to be that close to Christ? David sought to take refuge under the wings of the Lord, snuggled up to his chest. We can “take heart” from him.

In Psalm 61:1-4 David is in a desert wilderness and he prays: “Hear my cry, O God… From the ends of the earth I call to you… Lead me to the rock that is higher than I… I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings. Selah.”

I can imagine David hiding and praying in a desert cave as the armies of Saul (or his son Absalom) are hunting him down. In his trial he trusted in the Lord as his refuge.

What difficulty are you experiencing? Make the Lord your refuge.

Take a moment to pray “Jesus is My Refuge,” my Breath Prayer inspired by Psalm 61:4. Be still for awhile… Imagine yourself under the wings of Christ who longs for you with tears… See yourself hiding in Christ your cave… Let him embrace you close to his heart…

Breathe in the precious name of the Lord Jesus Christ… Breathe out your longing for him…
Linger in the selah of the Psalmist: breathe in Se (say)… and breathe out lah…

Jesus is My Refuge
Lord Jesus Christ… I long to dwell in your tent forever…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your wings…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your tears…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your cave…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your kingdom…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your embrace…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your holy name…
Se… lah…

Lord Jesus Christ… I long to dwell in your tent forever.

Abiding in Prayer is one of the spiritual exercises that helps me the most. I like to meditate on Scripture in this way for a few quiet minutes in the morning. Then as often as I can remember during the day I practice God’s presence as I do whatever I am doing by praying a line like:
“Lord Jesus Christ… I take refuge in the shelter of your wings…”

Be Still as the Lake at Dawn

Have you ever meditated on a nature setting as a way to listen to God? God reveals himself and his purposes for us through his creation. Praying a Psalm in its Nature Setting is a favorite spiritual practice of mine.

For instance, many times in the early morning I have met with Jesus by meditating at Woodbridge North Lake near my home in Irvine, CA.

The image of the still lake is imbeded deep in my conscious and my prayers. It draws me into the quiet. It opens my heart to listen. It centers me in God’s presence. It reflects heaven to me in surprising ways.

And it inspired my prayer poem: “Be Still.”
Be Still

Be still as the lake at Dawn

In a world that wakes to alarms and agendas:

Quietly rest so you can listen;

Breathe and open to your soul;

Wait patiently to receive what is to come,

Softly absorb the light as a looking glass.

~

Be still to know the I AM;

Let the “rush hour” pass by your silence:

The Voice whispers to create Life;

It swims and plays deep within you;

As holy feet step upon your waters

Heaven’s Face smiles upon you

– and out from you.

~

Be still as the lake at Dawn;

Be still to know the I AM;

In a world that wakes to alarms and agendas

Let the “rush hour” pass by your silence.

~

Quietly rest so you can listen:

The Voice whispers to create Life;

Breathe and open to your soul

It swims and plays deep within you.

~

Wait patiently to receive what is to come,

As holy feet step upon your waters;

Softly absorb the light as a looking glass,

Heaven’s Face smiles upon you

– and out from you.

Thirsty for Jesus!

I had too much to do today. But thank God I kept my Sabbath anyway to walk in the hills and go into quiet prayer.

I set aside ministry opportunities, but they came with me in my head! So I kept setting aside all these good thoughts for the best thoughts. I let the beauty of God’s creation and the prayers of the Psalmist draw me into Christ’s wonderful presence.

Eventually all that was left was Jesus. And in Jesus I found delight!

Later I prayed about ministry matters and then I did the work of ministry in Jesus’ easy yoke.

O Jesus! O that I would live with you in this way.

O Jesus!

(A prayer of paraphrases from Psalm 63 verses 1 and 3)

O Jesus!

My soul thirsts for you! – for your Spirit’s living waters;

My whole being from the inside out yearns for your presence;

My personality clings to you to hold me together, upright;

My inner depths look up to you, longing for your smile;

My soul cries out to you, to flow in your life now and forever.

O Jesus!

Your love is better than life! – better than any other thing;

Your presence with me is the only thing that satisfies me;

Your personality – wonderfully complete – is what embraces me;

Your deep mercy and grace is all that I live for;

Your life in me and through me to others is my greatest joy.

O Jesus!

My soul thirsts for you! – for your Spirit’s living waters;

Your love is better than life! – better than any other thing;

My whole being from the inside out yearns for your presence;

Your presence with me is the only thing that satisfies me;

My personality clings to you to hold me together, upright;

Your personality – wonderfully complete – is what embraces me;

My inner depths look up to you, longing for your smile;

Your deep mercy and grace is all that I live for;

My soul cries out to you, to flow in your life now and forever.

Your life in me and through me to others is my greatest joy.

Trying to get more done in less time?

I was talking with a friend who likes to drive in the fast lane. He thrives on trying to get more done in less time in order to be successful. He’s very productive… and stressed.

He doesn’t realize that he’s continually recruiting adrenaline to give him the boost of energy and confidence that he feels he needs to handle all of his responsibilities. His body’s production of adrenaline is like his own drug manufacturing plant! He has adrenaline dependence.

Other people get their adrenaline hits through extreme sports, risky behavior, or loud music.

Adrenaline is God’s gift to us. It’s meant to help us respond to emergencies and urgent needs. Used sparingly it’s a good thing. Used continually it wears down your body and diminishes your life. (Doctors have called this “hurry sickness.”) You get to the point where it’s hard to slow down and enjoy the little blessings in each day – birds singing, children playing, relaxing with a friend, prayer.

It’s difficult for people like my friend to get off of adrenaline. It feels so good! It helps them to get more done. And when they slow down (and aren’t stimulating themselves with adrenaline) they feel tired, empty, and depressed.

I myself have overcome adrenaline dependence. And I’ve helped pastors and other leaders get off the destructive habit of relying on the body’s “speed.”

Freedom comes with learning to set boundaries on work and “urgent” demands and slow down your pace of life. It can be helpful to practice slowing down your pace of life by driving in the slow lane on the road in order to enjoy music (that’s not too loud!) or to pray. Best of all is to learn the value of spending large blocks of time in silence and solitude in order to “be still” with Jesus. (Start with 30 minutes and build from there.)

Slowing down can’t be learned in a “self-help” program. You might have adrenaline withdrawals. You’ll probably feel bored, restless, or insignificant. You need to “process” your emotions with someone and to get coaching on learning new ways of coping with stress.

May the Wind Lift Us

I hiked up into the foothills of Saddleback Mountain this weekend with a friend. From about 2,000 feet up we looked out over the green hills, orchards, and the city of Irvine stretching out till the ocean in the distance. As we stood quietly in prayer the breeze swayed the tall grasses and rustled through the shrub all around us...

I was meditating on how the Holy Spirit is like the wind: we can't see him, but we see his effects; he doesn't speak audibly (normally), but speaks through the objects he moves. To hear God's voice is like hearing the breeze: we need to be still and quiet for awhile.

Then we saw a gift from God: two great hawks with their wings outstretched, gliding effortlessly on the wind. Of course, we thought of Isaiah's words: "They that wait upon the Lord shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint" (Isaiah 40:31).

May the Lord help us to enter his peace, to "Be still and know that he is God" (Psalm 46:10).