I’m perched in the porch swing this morning listening to the joyous singing of the songbirds. The warm sunshine, beaming from a beautiful deep blue sky, is kissing my cheeks like a benevolent grandmother. There is just enough of a breeze to touch the keys of the organ wind chimes across the street and ping the tiniest of the silver bells on my wind chimes. The bamboo’s long slender leaves are serving as pianist for the yard symphony, their soft rustlings adding a delicate drum brush beat. It’s a glorious day in my little slice of heaven on earth.

I’m watching all the beautiful songbirds in my yard and thinking of biblical scripture in Genesis where God brought the animals to Adam so he could name them. The scripture reads, “Out of the ground the Lord God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the birds of the air, and to every beast of the field.” I wonder if Adam gave great thought to naming the animals. It’s obvious that God took special care as he created and colored each creature. I know he loved painting the butterfly’s wings and the zebra’s stripes. He colored our world so gloriously.

I love this quote from Terry Tempest Williams — “I pray to the birds. I pray to the birds because I believe they will carry the messages of my heart upward. I pray to them because I believe in their existence, the way their songs begin and end each day — the invocations and benedictions of Earth. I pray to the birds because they remind me of what I love rather than what I fear. And at the end of my prayers, they teach me how to listen.”

I love the songbirds in my yard. I feel God’s presence when I see the beauty in his creation of the little wondrous birds. When they sit and stare at me I feel the beats of their hearts, the strength of their wings. I see God’s watercolor brush strokes on their plumage and hear his love through their songs. The crimson cardinals remind me that God is saving me a place in his eternal kingdom where I’ll be reunited with my loved ones who have departed this life.

Birds are depicted in the Bible praising God through their lyrical songs. Psalm 148:13 reads, “Birds praise God by singing, and all of creation is invited to praise God.” Birds are testaments to God’s care of the world he created, a reminder for us to trust in God’s plans for our lives. “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them,” Matthew 6:26.

God cares for us as he does the smallest birds. We can be a songbird for God by singing praises to him, expressing our joy and gratitude through song. In Psalm 84 we read, “Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise!” Let’s make a joyful noise for the Lord. We don’t have to join the church choir, we can sing him praises with our voice in the shower, whistle our thanks while we work, or hum a hymn of gratitude as we rock a grandchild to sleep.

“may my heart always be open to little birds who are the secrets of living.” — e.e. cummings