08/03/2026
Look at the Birds
by Martha Cusimano
"Look at the birds of the air. They do not sow or reap or store away in barns, yet you Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" Matt. 6:26-27
I love to sit on our patio in the morning and watch and listen to the birds who frequent our bird feeders, as well as those who stay on the periphery of the yard, eating bugs and worms. Their God-given instincts and personalities are fascinating to me. I have an amazing app on my phone, "Merlin," developed by Cornell University, that will show the name and a photo of each bird as it "hears" the song it sings or other sound it makes . It is not unusual to have a list of 20 to 25 birds. During this time with the birds, I often think of the verse above from the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus told his followers not to worry because God takes care of the birds and will also take care of us, who are MUCH more valuable to God.
Jesus told us not to worry, but how are we able to stop ourselves from worrying and instead trust that God will take care of us and our loved ones?
There are numerous verses of scripture that God has given us to help us know how to redirect our anxious thoughts. In Philippians 4: 6-8, Paul writes: " Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think on these things."
In 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18 Paul says: "Rejoice at all times. Pray without ceasing. Give thanks in every circumstance, for this God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
Prayer is a central theme in the verses above, but being THANKFUL is also a key element in these instructions from Paul. Thankful in "every circumstance" even when we don't understand what God is doing and the circumstances may be awful!
I often listen to a podcaster, Dr. Lee Warren, who is a Christian Neurosurgeon. In a recent podcast, Dr. Warren talked about how neuroscience and scripture align. He stated, "Gratitude rewires the brain for joy. Practicing gratitude activates the medial prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain that regulates emotions. This boosts dopamine and serotonin, the "happy chemicals" in your brain which improve mood and build resilience.
Gratitude reshapes the brain over time to scan the world for positive things rather than negative things." Dr. Warren goes on to say that when we start focusing on good things, i.e., whatever is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy, per Phil. 4: 8, and expecting good things, our brains can "rewire" and will start seeing more of the good things already there in our lives. In other words, God tells us to be thankful and "think on these things" because it is good for US and our mental health, not because He needs our gratitude and positive thoughts, though maybe He does enjoy our gratitude. Being grateful and positive helps combat anxiety over our circumstances and helps us have joy in the midst of those circumstances. God is for us and He is good! If we meditate on his Word and do what it says, we can grow in our ability to trust that God is working for our good. Dr. Warren suggests, as many therapists do, that keeping a gratitude journal can be a helpful practice. I plan to be better about doing that!
Prayer:
Dear Lord, we are "fearfully and wonderfully made" by you to have the ability to grow in our ability to resist negative, anxious thinking. Thank you for your word, which the light for our feet and the light for our path. Amen
