“I am like a pelican of the wilderness: I am like an owl of the desert. I watch, and am as a sparrow alone upon the house top.”
The Loneliness
This psalmist names three specific, isolated images here, worth examining directly, pelican of the wilderness, owl of the desert, sparrow alone, worth holding as this movement’s own vivid, honest naming of genuine isolation, each image chosen specifically for its own solitary, described nature.
Notice I watch, worth holding as honest acknowledgment of wakeful, alert loneliness, not peaceful solitude but this described, actual watching, worth recognizing whether this same, honest wakefulness has characterized your own experience of genuine, isolated loneliness, alert rather than restful.
This is worth applying as genuine, permitted expression, worth considering what your own specific, vivid image of this loneliness might actually be, following this psalmist’s own creative, honest naming, worth using your own words, however specific or unusual, to describe this genuine, honest isolation.
Consider today naming your own specific experience of loneliness this vividly, following this psalmist’s own creative example, sparrow alone upon the housetop, worth finding your own honest image for whatever isolation genuinely, actually describes your current experience, bringing this directly to God.
Live As Family
- Consider your own specific, vivid image for the loneliness you currently, genuinely experience.
- Name this honestly today, following this psalmist’s own creative, direct example.
- Bring this specific image to God today, trusting honest, vivid naming as legitimate prayer.
Prayer
Lord, I am like a sparrow alone upon the housetop, watching. Let me name my own genuine isolation this vividly, honestly, trusting this as legitimate, permitted prayer. Amen.
Carry this today
Vivid, honest naming of loneliness, in your own specific words, is legitimate, permitted prayer.