It's for the birds

Last Saturday we bought a couple of bird feeders. The bird-feeder lady told us that it might take some time for the birds to find the feeder. Just be patient! The little book she gave us to read said that it might take months -- months! -- for the birds to find the feeders. We didn't want to wait months. The bird-lady sold us seed, but didn't have any patience in a bottle that she could sell to us.

On Thursday morning, Steve looked outside and found birds! Less than a week. So far we've seen tufted titmouses (titmice?), cardinals (both male and female), nuthatches, blue jays, woodpeckers, doves, plus some kind of little brown speckled bird and a red and brown bird with no crest.

There is almost a constant amount of traffic on these two bird feeders. A couple of birds will arrive, eat, fly off and be replaced by other birds. A couple of times I've seen birds sitting on a nearby wall as if waiting their turns.

This is my question. Were all of these birds around before we got the feeders? Did I just not notice them? I'm a biologist, but I don't think I've ever even HEARD of a nuthatch, and now I've seen oodles of them. Did you know they walk down tree trunks head-first? Did you know there is something called a hairy woodpeckers? A downy woodpecker? I'm not sure which kind or kinds we have, but I've seen them every day since the birds arrived.

Have these feeders attracted the birds from far around the neighborhood, or have these birds been in our woods all along? Am I only noticing them now because I'm watching for them?

Is God like that sometimes? Is he hanging around, waiting for us to notice him? I wonder if in his love for us, he gets impatient, wishing we would turn and notice him.

Now that we have these birds in our backyard, I'm thinking up ways to see more of them. Do we need more feeders? A birdbath? Maybe a birdhouse for blue birds? A hummingbird feeder?

Once we find God in our backyard or in our heart, do we feel that kind of excitement to see more of him? I read this morning that we should spend almost enough time each morning in prayer to feel satisfied. If we can walk away from devotions and prayers each morning, with just a little bit of yearning left, then we will search for God all day.

I go to work, wishing I could stay home and watch the birds. Do we feel that kind of yearning to find God? Sometimes we do, and I think we can attribute it to grace.

Images: Dew on clover and honeysuckle this morning at the VA.