His Eye is on the Sparrow

1. "Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come,
   Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heav’n and home,
   When Jesus is my portion? My constant Friend is He:
   His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
   His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me."
2. 
   
3. I have heard this song many times, but its words impacted me once again at a funeral I attended recently-the funeral of a young woman in our community who was shot and killed by her boyfriend. A woman of 19 who leaves behind two small boys.

In the midst of planning and preparing for the joyous occasion of my brother's wedding, I received the call from a dear friend that her niece (whom I knew as well), had been shot and killed. I grieved with her over the sudden death. I sat silently with her in her apartment as she grappled with the unknowns of the situation. Why was this young woman left to die on the street- alone and without comfort? Why would God allow a mother to be taken away so violently from the two little boys she loved? Not easy questions to answer. 

In the midst of Christmas and wedding celebrations, I felt a burden for those grieving and trying to process loss that I have never had to experience. Many of those grieving- siblings, cousins, parents- don't know the peace and hope of Christ.

The funeral service was packed with people- including many who are gang members. My heart ached as each person passed her coffin to say goodbye- the desperate sobs of those who will miss her most still echo in my ears.

Whose arms will these hurting souls run to? Do they know their Heavenly Father waits with open arms? He longs to heal their wounds and to hide them beneath the shadow of His wings.

After leaving the funeral, I will admit, I felt a sense of hopelessness. Can Christ truly penetrate the chaos, violence and poverty that I can only glimpse at? I know in my heart He can, but at times I feel unequipped to the task of urban ministry.

It's hard- plain and simple. It's gut-wrenching. It takes all you have and more and sometimes fruit is hard to see.

But I know His eye is on the city and more than that, He is at work in the city! He loves each person who attended that funeral and His hope is that each person come to know Him as Savior.

How thankful I am that Christ is my portion- that he sustains me when I am week and ill-equipped.

1. “Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender word I hear,
   And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears;
   Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see;
   His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me;
   His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me."