I recently read a story about a group of firefighters who were walking through a forest that had just burned. They were checking for hotspots and found a charred lump. They soon realized that the lump was a charred bird and thought it was strange that it hadn’t flown away from the fire. One of the firefighters decided to kick the bird off of the trail and as soon as he did, four little birds came out from under the mother’s body. The mother hen was the only chance that the chicks had for safety and she willingly gave her life to save her chicks. This story reminds me of how God longs to gather each of us under his wings to protect us. Matthew 23:37 says: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.” Not all baby chicks run to their mother for protection and try to find their own way. The mother hen can’t run around trying to gather each of them. They have to come to her. That’s how it is with God. He is waiting to protect us from whatever circumstance we may find ourselves in but he wants us to come to Him. We need to seek God in all areas of our lives and trust him to protect us.
By: Elton Gingerich
