As I think about my many failures, I looked back at how they have changed my life, and what deep scars they have left upon my soul. We don't understand why things happen the way they do, or why we do such foolish things, but we have a God most holy who will take our evil and turn it into good.
Sometimes it's the small things that pass through our lives, or the tragedies that break our hearts, which can be turned into the greatest good. God's children are always in His hands and He hears our cries. During our lives we may do terrible things which go on with us forever, but by our confession to God, and with true repentance in our hearts, we are forgiven. We often say, if I had only done something different back then, this tragedy would not have occurred, and the terrible scars upon my heart would not be there. Such was the case with a tiny sparrow that God sent into my life.
When I was just a lad, we didn't have very much,
one pair of shoes each year, and hand-me-downs and such
I remember early one Christmas morning, I sneaked down the stairs to see,
what Mom and Dad had left me, underneath our Christmas tree
My eyes could hardly behold, laying there just for me,
a brand new Daisy BB-Gun, more beautiful than any I'd ever seen
I immediately went outside, a new power that gun gave me,
I felt much taller and stronger, than any living tree
I shot at sticks and bottles, to sharpen up my aim,
the closer to the target, the stronger I became
One summer's afternoon, with nothing else to do,
I sat looking out my bed room window, at the clouds and sky of blue
I saw in a tree a tiny sparrow, as busy as he could be,
working hard preparing for tomorrow, he had not noticed me
I thought for just a second, is my aim good enough for him,
I'll just try to scare him, sitting there on that tree limb
I remember looking down that gun barrel,
I'll never be able to hit him from here
But when I pulled the trigger,
he tumbled, fell, and fluttered, down from his tree limb
My heart pounded quickly, I said, oh no this cannot be,
I've killed the tiny sparrow, which was singing there for me
I think about that tiny sparrow, whose life I took that day,
what he could have done or been, if I hadn't taken his life away
Now that I am old and gray, I still can see that big old tree,
with God's loving little sparrow, there singing just for me
Today I look out another window, at the many evergreen trees,
I feed the sparrows daily, so they will keep singing to me
I see them flitter and flutter, as on through life they go
they wonder where the food comes from, in the mitts of the deep, deep snow
It comes from that tiny sparrow, that lived so long ago,
the love he gave me so freely, now protects them from the cold
I know my Lord and Savior, did the same for me on Calvary,
He will forgive me for taking His tiny sparrow, from that old green tree
Amen.
The death of a small child is so hard to understand, but it is the love for that small child that burns in our heart with a glow that can never be quenched. It is the love for that lost child that changes our hearts forever. The child holds a special place in our hearts, and makes our lives so much richer for having had them come our way. That same child holds a special place in God's heart and in His heaven as well.
You see, it is the life of that child living in the world of our hearts that will go on forever. We too will shed this physical body, and enter the everlasting world of the heart where there will be no more pain, sorrow, dying, or tears ever again. It is in the life of the heart everlasting that we will regain our sight, so we can once again see that child we thought was lost, but was actually being held in the loving arms of God all along. Let not your heart be troubled, because the future is in the heart of the true believer. As the old song goes, "We'll understand it better by and by".
It is through a lost child, or love one, that God teaches us the importance of life and loving one another. We all must die, the only questions is when. We must understand that the lost ones were sent here just for us, for our benefit, and to help mold us into the image of Christ. Jesus saw much sorrow during His life here on earth, but He changed it all into good, because He knew His life was in His Father's hands. The child of God will know my words are true, and that all things work for good, for those who love the Lord. We will see that lost loved one again one day, but we must understand that they now have a happiness this world can never know. If I am not selfish, and truly love someone, I will only want the best for them. To be in God's arms, is the best place there is, even though we do miss having them with us.
Through the trials and tribulations in our lives, God is mending our hearts to make them strong enough to last forever. If Jesus is not the true Lord and King of your life, my words will have a hollow ring. But if we truly know who holds the future, then we know He holds the little ones too.
Thank You Father for letting me finally see, You're most gracious and loving plan for me. Thank you tiny sparrow for lovingly teaching me, I know you'll be singing around God's throne, for eternity.