“His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches me.” Needlework is not my artistic release, but that never stopped me from my passion for reading pattern books. As I looked through the needlepoint books, these words caught my eye in a pattern. I stopped because I recognized the words, then read the entire verse on the pattern page, designed for someone to work the words onto a pillow or a chair pad.
The great hymns of old raise my spirits any time, and I really could fill this blog each day with thoughts and reflections from them. I did quite a bit of “pew time” growing up and had an incredible talent for fixing my gaze toward the preacher while my mind wandered far and wide and to places of intrigue. But when the organ fired up, I would sit taller in my seat to allow the music to wash over me and hear the words I know by heart.
When I saw the words to this song on a pillow pattern, they gave me pause to let out a sigh, right there in the DMC floss aisle of Jo Ann’s.
Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home?
When Jesus is my portion, my constant friend is he
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches me;
His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches me.
I sing because I’m happy,
I sing because I’m free,
For his eye is on the sparrow,
And I know he’s watching me.
With my curiosity piqued to know more, I looked up the author and inspiration for these words. A minister’s wife, Civilla Martin penned His Eye is on the Sparrow in the spring of 1905. Martin was visiting a woman named Mrs. Doolittle who had been bedridden for more than 20 years. During the visit, Martin inquired as to the secret for Mrs. Doolittle’s bright and hopeful outlook. She replied: “His eye is on the sparrow, and I know he watches me.” Mrs. Doolittle referred to Matthew 10:29-31 where we are told that God knows every little sparrow and we do not need to fear because he knows us as well and keeps watch over us at all times.
In this wide world of daily busyness and hurries, I find it easy to feel small and insignificant, and I am all too familiar with the tendency to grab onto loneliness. But, as I look around, and even walk down my driveway, there are many people who have rescued this foreigner in a new land. I have new friends who give me familiarity in an unfamiliar place.
Even in our most lonely of times, we are not alone in this world. My windows are open and I hear symphony of bird calls coming in from the woods to remind me that if his eye is on the sparrow, then I know he is watching me.
I did not buy the needlework pattern today. While I can be quite impulsive when it comes to pattern books, I did grab a moment of lucidity and realize that I don’t even know how to work needlepoint. So, while I have no idea why I was reading books from that section, I am glad I came across Mrs. Civilla Martin’s words. They stuck with me and I like that.
No comments:
Post a Comment