I sat on the patio enjoying the tranquility of time alone when a familiar buzzing zoomed past me. I quickly looked around to find the hummingbird hovering over a flower, sucking nectar from a blossom. With precision and intention, the small pilot moved from bloom to bloom, satisfied with his meal. As the sun hit him, he turned the most brilliant hot pink! He then flew to a branch and sat there longer than I have ever seen a hummingbird remain still.
I finally got up and went inside to fetch my camera, sitting so still, I thought I might be able to capture some good photos of the miniature wonder. When I sat back down the hummer darted back to the flowers and began to eat again. It must have been a different hummingbird as this one turned green in the sun and not pink. Either way, the tiny bird meticulously went from flower to flower, drinking in all the goodness to fill his tiny belly. Once finished, he too found a resting place in the tree and perched without movement for quite some time.
As I watched the bird I thought how he ate from the flowers that in a few weeks time would be dried up and dead on the ground. Then what? Then he'll move on to a new plant. Flower by flower he will be fed and taken care of. His provision will come from one flower for a time, and when that flower has given all it has to offer, the hummer will move on to the provision of a new flower. That little bird will not go without. It might require a move to a new place, but he will be provided for and well fed.
God's design is so incredible. In Matthew 6:26 it says, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?" We recently left the flower of the Africa Mercy and God's provision there for a new flower in Alameda, California. We are enjoying this new flower for a short time, a generous provision of a home from a friend. Soon we will have to fly to find God's next provision for us and even though we have no idea where that will be or what it will look like, I am resting assured that the God who provides the nectar of flowers to one of the tiniest birds of the air, will also provide for us.
These hummingbirds seem so confident and content that they do not frantically fly around in a panic, worried that they might fail and starve. No, they eat and then take time to rest and sit peacefully, almost as if to say, "we trust you God, you've got a plan for us and we're not worried." Today I'm claiming Matthew 6 and resting peacefully in God's promise that He loves us more than the birds that He takes care of so well and He will provide for us too.