Just be…

As I walked into our backyard a week ago, I was very upset to find the remnants of ‘my’ bird’s nest scattered all over the lawn. It had fallen from our evergreen tree during the winds and rains we had during the night, and for some reason, that scene left a restlessness deep within me. The birds were long gone, but the empty nest always remained. That nest, or the frame at least, has lasted a few years now. And every year, early in the month of March, I would watch for a little mama bird to bring in tiny wisps of straw, leaves and twigs, and make her nest deep within the thick branches, right in front of my favourite spot in our family room. But before she did that, she would always try to battle for her favoured place on our deck. The site of her choice was on the highest beam – right bang over the bar-be-que. It was an annual battle between bird and man! Sometimes she won due to sheer persistence, and some other mama bird would claim the nest in the tree. Earlier this year, to pre-empt her, that area was completely meshed in by her nemesis, and she couldn’t access it from any direction. Believe me, she tried for many days. (I was rooting her – but let that be our secret. 🙂 ] And I so loved her persistence!

Finally, she decided to make do with the old nest in the tree, and I watched her fill and refurbish it ever so carefully every day, until she was satisfied, and then she promptly laid two perfect, tiny grey eggs in it. Soon there were baby birds, and oh the joy of watching her feed them and hearing their sweet chirps. Until one day (all too soon), the trio disappeared. And now, even the empty nest was gone! 🙁

Yesterday, while out for a drive with Abi (daughter#3), I looked at the grey skies and the sopping wet plants and said with a sigh, “Oh! It makes me so sad that the season of flowers is over!” And even as those words left my mouth, I realized that I had been doing a lot of that, lately. Looking back, with a sigh of unhappiness, that is! I would see a mother with little girls, walking down our street, and say, “Oh look! I so wish my girls were still little. I loved being the mother of little girls!” There was a restlessness within me, and everything reminded me of a time past. A time I perceived to be a happier one. My nest seemed a little more empty and sadder, by the minute. And so I went to bed with a prayer on my lips, and woke up the next morning to the words, Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10a)

But, it was not the whole verse that caught my attention. Just the word “be”. It kept reverberating in my soul. BE. What was it about the word be that was important? Well…

To be is to exist; to be is life; to be is to live in the reality of the present; to be is to rest in the knowledge that God, who is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, has created seasons of life; to be signifies that I have a purpose for each day; to be makes me aware that *I live and move and have my being in Him, all of my days; to be is to receive my manna (God’s gifts) with a thankful heart each morning; and to be is accepting memories as joyful treasures of the heart, or lessons for the present.

The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 3:1 that “There is a season (a time appointed) for everything and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven.” And all of creation (like my mama bird), seems to know that…except man.

So friends, at the beginning of a new month, I’m releasing everything that compels me to look back… to just be. I need to be in the reality of each moment – so that I can watch divine plans unfold, divine appointments change lives, and divine opportunities come to fruition, all for the glory of our God! I really cannot afford to miss any of these by looking back. 

*Acts 17:28