Each morning, as I water the plants in our front yard, a little hummingbird comes and sits on a wire that runs atop our Rose of Sharon tree. Its appearance is like clockwork. The hummingbird even sat patiently for me while I went inside our home to retrieve my phone to take its picture.

Hummingbirds rarely stay in one place for long. They flit around quite a bit. This hummingbird is just the opposite. He is calm and restful. It’s like this hummingbird was a messenger of sorts, violating its natural tendency to fly away. He waits for me as I water our plants.

Scientists say that a hummingbird’s fast-paced life allows it to perceive time more slowly. As the world wants us to ramp up our lives with invitations to always do more and accomplish more, the Lord is saying that He wants us to slow down to see what is missed in the blurring images of our hurried lives.

Jan and I continue to hear the Lord say He wants us to slow down and appreciate the moments that are present in each day. All of us only have today. Tomorrow is not promised. Our worry and concerns about tomorrows do not lengthen our lives; they blind us from seeing and experiencing God’s peace in each moment of the day.

Perhaps my resting hummingbird is a messenger who was given to me as a confirmation of what Jan and I are hearing. We do not need to always be doing something more for God instead of simply resting in His presence. It’s in that rest where we will experience a deeper expression of our faith, where the concerns of this life will fade away as we enter a more profound expression of God’s presence and His peace.