Birds have always fascinated me. I remember as a little girl lying on my back in the cool summer grass watching the birds glide and circle in the air. The grace and beauty of their seemingly effortless flight intrigued me even then.

Many times I would see hundreds and hundreds of birds perched on the telephone lines. My dad would always say “the birds are sittin on the line, it’s going to rain.” Too funny, to this day I still say that very phrase to myself when I see birds lined up on the powerlines.

Living in suburbia for over 30 years surrounded by concrete and steel meant only seeing a few sparrows and a lot of grackles. So after getting settled in our new country home a few years ago, we put up bird feeders and I was and still am, simply amazed by the variety of beautiful birds out here—finches, orioles, blue jays and cardinals. Tiny humming birds hover at the sugar-water feeder. It is mesmerizing to sit and watch these various shapes and sizes of birds feast.

Yes, I guess you could say birds have always fascinated me and actually, some of my favorite scriptures reference birds. But last year when the Lord chose to speak to me through two different people both with a reference to birds…well, you could have knocked me over with a feather…

About a year and a half ago, I felt the Holy Spirit tell me to propose and to lead a new ministry for a certain group of girls within our church’s mentoring program. I laid out a plan and we launched the ministry six months later. Even though I had prayed over this ministry for months and our church leadership had been doing the same, I was battling a lot of anxiety the day of the launch. There were two unanswered questions. First, would anyone step up to help me lead and secondly, would anyone show up to participate? There had been a few girls indicate interest but it is church ministry—there could be a room-full or no one. Plus, the one person I felt the Lord had laid on my heart to help me had told me the night before she simply couldn’t take on the role. So on my way to the ministry kickoff event (I have an hour drive to church) I simply prayed and asked the Lord for “someone to show up.” That plea covered both concerns.

One by one that evening the girls began to arrive. There were five. As I began introducing myself I saw Jen walking around the corner and into our room. I was stunned! I said, “What are you doing here? I thought you said you couldn’t help out.” Jen looked at me and said, “I’ll tell you what happened to me today after the meeting.”

When our meeting was over and everyone had left, Jen began to tell me what had transpired earlier that day. She said during her quiet time she was looking out her window and in the fog she could see a lone bird perched at the top of a tree. She quickly snapped a picture of the bird and in that moment she heard the Holy Spirit speak these words, “show up for her, she feels alone—she is not.”

Wow. The Lord didn’t just give Jen the exact words I had prayed but He provided a beautiful illustration of how I was feeling! Only God.

He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Psalm 91:4 (NIV)

That’s not all He had for me that evening. There was more.

As I was heading to my car I saw a couple of the girls from our group talking. I was very surprised they were still there because Jen and I had been inside for quite some time. I waved at them and as I walked to my car one of the girls approached me and asked if she could talk to me. I said sure and then she began telling me that while I was talking during the meeting she had a vision. Go on. She proceeds to say she could see me “standing alone at the edge of a cliff.” Okay, now I’m freaking out a little. She continued, “You confidently fell forward and in that moment an eagle swooped in and carried you on its wings.”

Thank goodness we were standing outside because I NEEDED air! If the enemy had managed to plant any doubt in my mind over the creation of this ministry the Lord crushed those doubts as only He can do—subtly, personally and undeniably!

You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Exodus 19:4 (NIV)

C. Deni Johnson