Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Wonders in the Sky

 “God, who made the world and everything in it, is Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples made by human hands. Nor does he need anything that we can supply by working for him, since it is he himself who gives life and breath and everything else to everyone.”  Acts 17: 24-25 (TEV)

As my husband Dick and I excitedly watched a local air show, we shook our heads in disbelief at the gravity-defying feats of flight performed by the talented pilots in their brilliantly painted airplanes. Audible “Ohhhhhs” and “Ahhhhhs” could be heard all around us each time a plane looped and dived and spun around in what appeared to be uncontrolled abandon.

On our way home, our attention was drawn to a little flock of common house sparrows hopping about near an intersection.  With no runway for acceleration, one little brown bird lifted directly off the ground and skimmed over a parked car.  Momentarily retracting his wings, the sparrow shot through a chain link fence and then ascended to a nearby maple tree.  Veering around leaves and branches, the sparrow abruptly landed on a slender twig

In amazement, I turned to Dick and asked, "Could anything at the air show fly like that?"  Staring incredulously, he shook his head no. Awe rendered us both speechless.

While humanity took decades to achieve flight, with just a word, God spoke a sparrow into existence which possessed far superior flying capabilities.   Though we often marvel at all we can accomplish, what God has in store for us is greater than we could ever imagine.  A common brown house sparrow proves it!

Prayer:  Lord, when we are trusting too much in the limited capabilities of ourselves or others, remind us of Your powerful hand at work all around us. Amen.

©2011 Pamela D. Williams
First published in THE SECRET PLACE—SPRING 2008