06/15/2020
By Pastor Vinnie Cappetta
A couple of Sundays ago before the livestream, I heard a noise in the church foyer, but I ignored it thinking it might have been outside. I couldn’t ignore it the second time…the noise was coming from the corner of the foyer. I walked over slowly to where there were a couple of buckets in the corner. I was expecting to see a small mouse inside of one of the buckets, but instead I saw the outline of a wing. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, so I called someone else over and we shined a light into the bucket. The person confirmed that it was a wing. A small bird was in the bucket. We picked the bucket up and placed it out front of the church and after a few minutes, the bird flew off into the sky. Apparently, the bird had gotten into the foyer a few days before when all the doors were open. This reminds me of Psalm 84 which reveals that “even a sparrow finds a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, at your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God.” This is likely the words of someone whose job it was to work in and around the Tabernacle of the Lord in the Old Testament.
Like the bird who found refuge in the beauty and shelter of the church, we are to find refuge in the beauty of the Lord. His presence is a beautiful place to be. Our souls long and our flesh sings for joy to recognize and enjoy the presence of God. We are blessed when we dwell in that place and sing his praises.
I find it ironic how the bird was able to enter into the house of the Lord, while the rest of us have to wait for the building to reopen. Yet, we can be thankful that God doesn’t dwell in a house made by human hands, but that His presence can be experienced anywhere. Let’s take some time this week to reflect on how beautiful it is to be able to rest in the presence of the Lord. Let’s take some time to recognize how this is what our souls long for and faint for. Let’s sing for joy to the living God. If we do this while we are apart from one another, how joyful will our singing be once we are able to regather to worship in the place where this bird had been resting?
Psalm 84
84 How lovely is your dwelling place,
O Lord of hosts!
2 My soul longs, yes, faints
for the courts of the Lord;
my heart and flesh sing for joy
to the living God.
3 Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O Lord of hosts,
my King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house,
ever singing your praise! Selah
