Birdsongs of Praise

      The days are longer and warmer now.  The sun comes up earlier and earlier and with the sun, come the birds.  There are several birds nesting in the trees around the yard and they begin singing long before the sun comes over the horizon.
        The other morning, I woke up just before five-thirty.  The sun hadn't risen yet but the sky was gray and lightening up enough to see clearly.  It wasn't the light that woke me up though.  It was the birds and one in particular who was in the tree not far from the bathroom window.
        In the stillness of the dawn the bird song was so loud, it almost echoed.  It was bright, jaunty, and lyrical.  In the cool air coming in through the window, the song beckoned me to wake up and enjoy the new day.  It was such a clear and beautiful song, it reminded me of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem; what is called Palm Sunday.  When Jesus rides the donkey into the city and the people cry out in praise, those in authority tell Jesus to order everyone to stop.  Jesus answers, "I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out."  (Luke 19:40)  No composer could write a more beautiful song of praise.
       I stood and listened to the bird's song, gradually joined by other birds.  I lingered for a while but I confess, I soon took my chilly feet and crawled back into bed and went back to sleep.  Morning is not my time of day.
       Now my husband gets up with the sun, usually before his alarm goes off and he is ready to go.  He is like the birds, ready to greet the sun with song.  Me?  I'm more like the cartoon cat Garfield, ready to pull the blankets over my head and wish that morning would come back later.
       And yet as I listened to the bird that morning in the pristine stillness as the sky lightened, I fell in love with the beginning of the day in spite of myself.  A few hours later, when I got up for the day, I tried to hang on to that joy and greet the day with that same sense of joy and hope-filled possibilities.
       I don't think we can change our biorhythms; the slight changes in the lightening of the sky are not enough to wake me up with a song just itching to be sung.  However, I know that my day goes better when I face it with hope.  It wasn't the music of the birdsong that changed my morning but rather that the beauty of the birdsong reconnected me to the Creator, to God, the source of power, life, and hope.
       There are times when facing a new day with hope just feels impossible because of what we carry with us from yesterday: our failures and ourselves.  Sometimes that burden has even kept us awake during the night, robbing us of healing sleep.  But out of love, God sent Jesus that we can be forgiven.  That  forgiveness makes that hope possible no matter what did or didn't happen in all our yesterdays.  The hope of the new day does not rely on us but is a gift from God.

       Whether you wake up in the morning smiling and singing or feeling like you'd rather hit the sun with a giant snooze button, reconnecting with God will do more to make the day go better than any cup of coffee.  Some people enjoy reading devotions or praying in the stillness before anyone else wakes up; some days, a prayer from under the covers may be the best that we can manage.  It can be taking a moment to listen, or see, or smell the freshness of the morning or snuggling next to someone we love.  Find your morning touchstone that allows you to begin your day with God and remember that whatever the day brings, you do not face it alone.  Read Psalm 118:21-24