His eye is on the sparrow.

Today was a great day.  School was so much fun.  My geometry classes worked on Tessallations.  Projects are always a nice break from the normal classwork.  One of my students went to the restroom and came back with a baby bird.  It was out of the nest and some of the other students were bothering it.  He brought inside to the safety of my classroom.  After that little guy got over the shock, he hopped around the room and chirped all day.  Two students took it home to nurse it for a couple of weeks until it could survive on its own.  They named it "Angry."  Think about it for a minute; "Angry" Bird.  (If you have a smartphone, you will understand what a creative name that is!)

This afternoon, within a thirty minute timeframe, I went from feeling happy, peaceful and excited about my weekend to depressed.  I don't mean down, I mean depressed.  Sometimes there is no explanation for why we feel this way, but this was not one of those times.  My afternoon just went downhill and left me sitting here, staring at the den wall, not even realizing that an hour had passed.

When we come to moments like this, we have choices to make.  Unfortunately, the easy choices are not usually the ones that are in our best interest.  So, as I sit here thinking about the rest of the afternoon and evening, I have decided some things.

Even though I desperately want to do these things, I am NOT going to.....

• Climb into the bed and call it a day.
• Sit on the couch staring at the television.
• Allow my mind to be a harbor for the negative thoughts.
• Skip dinner and just forget about eating.

Even though right now I don't feel like doing these things, I AM going to.....

• Read some Psalms.
• Eat something healthy. 
• Go for a walk with Lulu.  (She has the ability to lighten any mood!) 
• Start cleaning my house. 
• Go to the late movies with Lily and her friends. 
• I will go to bed around 11:30 and give myself the pleasure of sleeping in tomorrow.

If birds can be depressed, I am sure that Angry was feeling a little down when he fell out of his safe nest this morning.  He was so fortunate that a kind hearted teenage boy came along and ushered him to safety.  He could have so easily been the target of a teenager with issues who was cruel to him.  He is now safely in the home of two great kids who will do their best to take care of him and get him ready for the world.

In the same way, when I am frightened and saddened by the world I am in, I know there is One who is holding me safely in the palm of His hands.  He is nuturing me and caring for me as I travel the difficult paths of this life.  I trust that with all my heart.  I will cling to His promises and let them give me the strength to do the things I NEED to do and not the things I want to do.

I bet you can guess what scripture I will reference today!

Matthew 10:29-31 (New Living Translation)
What is the price of two sparrows—one copper coin? 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.