For the past month I have become obsessed with a family of Robins who have made themselves at home, quite literally, on my front door. A steady stream of winged activity alerted me to the unexpected house guests. With a chorus of chirps and frenzied feathered activity, a mama bird somehow managed to hide a perfectly shaped nest and four blue eggs amongst the straw and flowers of my spring floral door wreath.
Because I am a mother and a grandmother, my propensity to nurture this growing family kicked into high gear. I limited foot traffic in and out of the front door, even posted a warning sign to alert guests about the gestating family. “Caution: nesting eggs … open with care!”
I fretted week after week with all sorts of worries. What if the mother bird abandons the nest? What if the eggs don’t hatch?”
Despite my worries, each week proved that the mother bird did not need my help. The eggs hatched into fuzzy pulsating lumps followed by hatchlings covered in downy feathers. Of course, I worried at each new stage, but each week the mama bird did what God designed her to do. She cared for her eggs that soon turned into fledgling birds.
God reminded me of the above scripture, reassuring me that it was His job to look after the birds of the air – not mine. Even though this Scripture reiterates that our worry is a waste of time, I still struggle in this area. Why do I relinquish to God my mother’s guilt, fear and worry over my adult children and their children, only to turn around and question God’s plan for their lives?
Why do we as mothers have such a tough time of letting go of our children? Am I the only mother who says she trusts God with her offspring, yet I continue to get in God’s way?
This is Holy Week so I quite naturally can’t help but think of Mary, the mother of Jesus. What worries she must have felt when her Son was arrested, humiliated, beaten and then crucified. The horrors she witnessed must have been unimaginable from a mother’s perspective.
Jesus foretold of His death and His promised resurrection after three days in the tomb. Did Mother Mary wrestle with untold “what if” scenarios? Even knowing He was the Son of God, she still must have worried and grieved and suffered as only a mother can.
This past month as I followed the brief life cycle of a bird’s journey from egg to flight, I somehow am strangely comforted knowing that just as God cares for the wild birds, He WILL take care of my “hatchlings” as well. I can worry and fret, but God is always in control, always watching over them. He has a plan and a purpose for each of them and it’s not my responsibility to help Him do His job.
I can worry about their journey or any number of trials and obstacles they encounter OR I can simply pray, trust God and get out of His way and let Him handle them with care.
Blessings in Christ,
Kathy K.
Thank you Kathy.