Most mornings I fill all the bird feeders and clean out the bird bath. I walk around our home looking for feathers. Almost every day I find an especially beautiful one; almost always it is a blue jay feather. They are so pretty and I am always thrilled to find one.
So this morning as I bent over to pick up a feather I spotted a very small feather. It was maybe a half inch long. It was black and its very tip was blue. I was so excited. I thank the birds every morning for their gift of feathers, but today I realized it was Papa God whom I should thank for this gift. He was up to something!
I retrieved a small jar and began my earnest search for these tiny feathers. You don’t notice them until you realize they are there and you search for them.
As I am picking up a tiny one I hear Papa say, “These are like the tears I collect. I capture every tear that falls. Every tear. Large or small. Every tear. I hear every cry and I hold every tear. Not one tear falls that I do not see.”
WOW.
I’m learning… so I immediately asked, “Who needs to hear this right now, Papa?” I sensed a few beautiful friends, but I also sensed this was for someone else, and I will continue to release the revelation of His intimacy and intentionality over the ones who need to hear this today. He hears your cries and He holds your every tear.
And then suddenly these little feathers start flowing to me. There is no breeze this morning, not to mention that I have never seen any feathers carried by a breeze, let alone these tiny feathers that fall between the blades of grass. I sensed it was another gift. Papa loves to give good gifts.
I shared this whole encounter with my girl Heather. She sensed that the little feathers blown to me were like the tears that flow to Papa. All tears flow to Papa God. That’s a good word.

Nota bene: According to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918, it is illegal to collect these feathers, so I am just showing them here before I return them to my yard.