I used to apply this to God. I always envisioned Him watching me, His eyes never leaving, just waiting for me to mess up. I knew He definitely had His eye on me but I believed it was because He wanted to punish me for anything I did wrong. It never entered my mind He might be watching over me in love, in order to protect me.

Though I now know the truth, He watches me in love and not to punish me, I still wasn’t sure I wanted to be “watched” all the time even if it was for protection. I thought it was creepy. I realized I was still clinging to some old negative thought habits based on lies. But how to get rid of these thoughts?

It wasn’t long after this that my youngest went tearing through the house and out into the yard. She never hurries anywhere so for her to run as fast as she can I knew something was wrong. I followed (a little more slowly) and found her out in the chicken yard making sure her precious birds were ok. She had heard them squawking in tones that weren’t normal and was afraid a predator of some sort was about to have chicken for dinner. She had good reason to think this too because our chickens could be easy prey for bears, lynx, eagles, foxes, etc. As I stood there watching her tend to the chickens, it hit me like a ton of bricks that this was how God watched over me.

Our youngest is a Chicken Whisperer and knows them inside and out. She can tell each one apart and knows them by name (even though a couple look exactly alike to me). She knows each one of their sounds and how each one acts. She knows if  one of them is sick or injured. She can tell by the song if one has just laid an egg. She guards them fiercely and does everything she can to keep them safe from predators, the weather, even each other. When she is in the house and can’t physically see them, she is always listening for them. She knows immediately if a threat exists. She spoils them rotten and absolutely loves to give them treats. She constantly asks me for vegetable scraps she can give to them. And when we’ve seen a predator in the area, she keeps them penned up in their run instead of letting them out into their yard, no matter how much they might protest. Why does she keep such a close eye on them? Because she loves them with every ounce of her being.

As I watched her with the chickens, the Lord showed me this was exactly how He watches us, not in a creepy way, but in a fiercely determined way because He loves us so very much. We truly can’t begin to comprehend the depth of His love.

So, what do you feel when you think about God watching you? Does it creep you out, make you mad or give you great comfort? I hope when you think about Him watching, you’ll think of chickens too and remember how much He loves you.