This summer we placed three bird boxes in our backyard. They were advertised to be the kind of boxes that bluebirds prefer –– narrow opening and no perch in front so enemies can’t steal their babies. To our surprise, we had trouble enticing bluebirds into our boxes! We kept shooing sparrows away, hoping bluebirds would move in. Finally, we had one bluebird couple.
Sparrows immediately moved into the other two boxes. Soon all three boxes had eggs. The bluebird eggs were blue and beautiful. When the eggs hatched, we had one clutch of four bluebirds and two clutches of six total sparrows. For the second clutch, sparrows evicted our only bluebird couple. We had sparrows in all three boxes. For the third clutch, all sparrows. Altogether, we had only four bluebird babies and approximately 20 baby sparrows. The babies were adorable, hopping around, learning to fly, and chirping like crazy. We loved watching the parents faithfully bringing food to feed their little ones. This was a fun summer!
The only disappointment, we wanted lots of beautiful bluebirds in our backyard. Sparrows are just ho-hum. They’re plain Jane. But I learned a new lesson about God this summer that changed my perspective. See what you think ––
In Biblical times, sparrows were the cheapest birds. Five sparrows sold for two pennies. They were the choice of sacrifice for the poor. And yet, Jesus used sparrows as a teaching example. Sparrows are not plain Jane to Jesus. In Matthew 10, He taught us that He knows every sparrow, exactly how many there are, where they are, and when they fall to the ground. They are always in God’s mind and under His care. Sparrows don’t worry about anything. They move into (my bluebird) boxes, have their babies, use the food God provides to feed the littles one, teach them to leave the nest and fly, and then do it all again. Jesus didn’t use red cardinals, yellow finches, or bluebirds for His example. He used the everyday spunky sparrow. Jesus always has a way of turning things upside down. The beautiful birds caught my eye. But the simple spunky sparrows caught the Savior’s heart.
In Luke 12, Jesus reassured His people that not one of those sparrows is forgotten by God. Then He made this bold statement –– Don’t be afraid. To God, you are worth more than many sparrows. I read that verse again recently and began wondering: How many sparrows are there anyway? How many sparrows am I worth?
I wonder if we miss the value in this simple, yet profound statement. Jesus doesn’t look at the outside. No insult to the beautiful cardinals, finches, or bluebirds. Jesus is simply saying “feather color” isn’t what draws His heart. “Heart” is what draws His heart. Spunky sparrows aren’t colorful. They’re earthy tones of tan, brown, gray, and black. They’re small plump birds. They hop along the ground and make us smile. They’re little tough guys who are very social. Sparrows can be found all over the world. Imagine the time and attention God spends on sparrows if they’re found all over the world. He feeds them all, protects them all, and continually watches over them. How many sparrows? An endless uncountable number. When one sparrow falls to the ground, He knows.
This everyday example explains the love of God so simply. Jesus casually assures us that His care and attention for each one of us individually is far more than what He gives to an uncountable number of worldwide sparrows. Still it’s a thought too big to grasp. But try this –– picture in your mind all the little sparrows around the world. Remember that God created and loves each one of them. Then smile and realize that God loves and cares for you more than all those little rascals put together.
How many sparrows are in the world? Only the Creator God knows. (For fun, I asked AI but it couldn’t answer.) Maybe each time we see a sparrow hopping around, it’s God’s “heavenly text message” –– “I Love You More!”