But not a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it. And the very hairs on your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are more valuable to God than a whole flock of sparrows. –Matthew 10:29-31 (NLT)

I love hummingbirds. I love sparrows, too, but hummingbirds can entertain for hours. They arrive in late spring with the hope of warm weather after a long and cold winter. They are fascinating to watch with their gravity defying stunts, even flying backwards.

Worldwide, there are more than 300 species. 300. Only a creative God who loves beauty would create 300 species of this tiny little bird for us to enjoy.

My mom, who lives in the same mountain town as I do, sets up feeders every May and these little birds swarm her porch.

One year, while my boys played outside, a poor little jeweled bird flew into the window. Panicking, my boys ran into the house, certain that my mom or I needed to perform bird surgery. Bird surgeons we are not, unfortunately, but still, we followed the boys to where the bird laid on its side, alive, but not moving.

As I tried to console two little boys who were scolding Grandma for having her windows too clean, which I’ve never been accused of, my mom went inside and returned with a spatula. She slid the spatula under the bird, and, with a slight lift, the bird suddenly fluttered up into the air, flew around us once then off into the wide blue skies.

The boys jump up and we all cheered. The miracles Grandmas can do are mind boggling. Seriously though, we believe the bird simply had fallen on its wing and could not take flight. All it needed was a little lift.

Even though that was several years ago, I’ve never forgotten how happy my boys were. They still mention it from time to time. Especially when a different bird hit our window recently that didn’t have such a happy ending. I like to think that is why I haven’t gotten to cleaning my windows. Its for the good of all bird-kind.

Anyway…I digress.

I was recently remembering this story with my son, and it made me think. Don’t we all need someone to come along with a spatula and give us a lift?

How often are we flying about our lives when we get blindsided by a window? We are doing okay, or so we think, everything seems normal, then we get that call, or that text, or anything else that we collide into and we crumple beneath its surprise. I know I have. I’m even experiencing something like that now.

We wonder how we will ever fly again. We are laying on our wing, helpless to the powers that might prey upon injured birds. Discouragement, depression, isolation, and helplessness would love to bind us up and keep us down.

What we need is someone to come along and lift us up.

Jesus said that not even a simple brown sparrow falls without our Father knowing. Windows appear out of the blue in this life. Some may be a little dingy and we have a hint at what might be coming, but many times the window is clean and surprises us. It may surprise us, but never our Father.

Our Father sees. Our Father knows. Just believing in His promises lifts us up. Promises like He is with us and will never leave us (Matthew 28:20), or He gives strength to the weary (Isaiah 40:29), or even He will give wisdom when we seek for it (James 1:5). Let’s not forget the best promise of all, everlasting life (John 3:16).

He is our provider, our helper, and our strength. When we seek Him, He promises we will find Him (Matthew 7:7-8).

His promises are the spatula that lift us up. I heard a song years ago and the chorus said, “If you can’t see His hand, trust His heart.” How do we know His heart? Through His promises. Through turning to His Word and believing despite what happens around us.

If you are one of the birds laying on your wing, He has a promise for you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Take heart, don’t give up. You will fly again.

What is one of your favorite promises that lifts you up?