I recently bought ferns for my front porch. That qualifies me as a genuine Green Thumb, I would say. They are the first bit of greenery I have ever purchased for my home. I’m just not that guy. I admire people who garden regularly; they seem happy to do it. But pulling weeds just isn’t my jam. I prefer to let them take over my yard and slowly drive the property value down over time. But that’s just me.

My wife was watering the ferns yesterday and she notice something just before pouring the water onto the plant. There was a very small nest with three very small eggs tucked away underneath one of the fern’s leaves. Taking the moment to show some real-life entertainment through nature to our three boys, she called for them to come out to the porch to see them. They of course loved it, oohing and awing as they huddled around the newly minted suburban neighborhood of our fern.

It’s a small thing (both literally and figuratively). We’ve all seen birds make nests and lay eggs before. And had it been in a normal time of human existence, I wouldn’t have thought much of it. I might have even considered it a nuisance—why did that bird pick MY fern to lay eggs in? Go give birth in someone else’s fern. It’s just going to lead to a mess to clean up later.

But this time was different. I had just created a message for my students a few days prior talking about how one of my biggest struggles was not feeling adequate in life. Whether it was school, sports, my job, me as a husband, or me as a father, my fear was that God and others would just overlook me because I wasn’t the best at anything.

But this little bird nest in my little fern on my little porch reminded me that this is not the point of life. Being “adequate enough” is not the point of the Kingdom. It’s not the point of our existence. It reminded me of Matthew 6:26, which is neatly nestled in the middle of the Sermon on the Mount. In it, Jesus says this: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”

God does not judge the value of a bird on whether or not he or she finds a suitable home for their young. Or how far they fly, or how fast. He ensures their needs are met because He created them and He loves them. That’s all the value they need.

Are we not more valuable than a small nest of eggs in a fern? It sure seems like Jesus thinks so. What a relief.

-Matt