There B Chickens

Last year my dear wife decided we needed 5 chickens. A friend that lives down the road gave us a 4 Bantee chicks, the Bantee hen that laid the eggs and an ornery old hen that Michele calls, "Queen Victoria". The same friend that gifted us the chickens, also spent a couple days building us a chicken coup and run. The chicken coup turned out amazing, complete with a couple windows and a ladder for them to chill-out roosting on. Anyways, the 4 snow white Bantee chickens discovered they can fly so, keeping them inside their pen is a joke. They come and go at will. One of my other neighbor "friends" snuck into our chicken coup and gave us a very obnoxious rooster. His life expectancy has been in question ever since he announced 4:00 a.m. his first morning here. I suspect I know why the neighbors left the little heathen in our chicken coup. However, a month ago, I opened the door to the coup and there was ”Bob", a day old Bantee chick. Bob was a pill and it took two of the mothering hens working around the clock to keep the little nuisance out of trouble. Bob lasted a week and disappeared. He was small enough to run through the chicken wire and escape the protection of his mothering hens. Two days ago, I stepped outside with "BubbaJoe" our elderly Pug for his morning patrol of the property and there in the middle of the grass was one of the white Bantee hens with 11 day old chicks. This is a far cry from Michele's plan for 5 chickens. Did I mention that my beautiful wife doesn't eat eggs? Anyway, I scrounged a treadmill box out of the recycle bin, filled it with fresh green Alfalfa and introduced the chicks to their new world. They have a lot to say and every-time they feel threatened, they quickly scurry under momma, all 11 of them. I observe layers of sermon illustrations in this blog. First is the dangers Bob chose to expose himself to when he left the protection of his mothering hen and the wire fence. I observed Bob having a good time and exploring all the world had to offer -- right up to where a hawk or owl swooped in and ruined his day. Second, the mothering hen and her 11 chicks have no appreciation for the protective box, green Alfalfa, constant fresh water, the nightly heat lamp, or the frequent feeding of chick scratch. They simply take for granted all we provide for them. They are so busy eating, sleeping, drinking, and exploring that they seldom pay us no more than a passing glance. I will limit my rambling observations, but know this, if a predictor were to come up on the porch looking for a chicken dinner, he would have to face me and my .45 caliber Colt. Why? Because I choose to be the caretaker, provider and protector of those 11 chicks. What do they do for me? Nothing. What do they have to offer me of value? Nothing. It would be silly for one of them in a grand gesture of gratitude to offer me a speck of chicken scratch that I tossed to him in the first place. What do I need his speck of scratch for? I have a whole bag at my disposal. Am I supposed to be impressed by the little chicks offering of a tiny flake of food? I often suspect the Almighty good Lord looks at me the same way as I offer Him a tiny speck of what He gave me in the first place. So what does God desire of you and me? "O man, He has told you what is good. What does the Lord ask of you but to do what is fair and to love kindness, and to walk without pride with your God?" Micah 6:8

Fruit Trees

Michele and I prepared a spot inside a deer fence, and planted fruit trees. 

I found it amazing that when you purchase fruit trees, all you get is a 4 foot long stick. 

The stick doesn’t look like much. 

As I dug holds to the prescribed depth, Michele carefully put nutritious compost and water in for the roots to draw from.   

We are a couple weeks into our fruit tree adventure, and already I notice green buds and tiny leaves showing up.

The trees require an amazing amount of protection, not only from deer and gophers, but also from ants and all sorts of hungry bugs that would like to feast on the tender new trees. 

I find myself studying pesticides to see what I can do to protect the little trees and give them a fighting chance for survival. 

My friend Marty has quite an orchard.  And he was telling me that if I water too much, the roots will rot. And if I over-fertilize, the trees will overdose and die.  There is more to this than I ever imagined. 

Marty has already began coaching me on the fall pruning responsibilities.  The removal of dead branches, shaping and forming the branches to insure a good harvest the next year. 

This whole process reminds me of caring for new Christians. 

They require protection until they know God’s Word well enough to recognize false teaching.  And they require protection until their faith has grown to the point where they rely on the Holy Spirit’s leading. 

They require healthy nutrition to insure they have a strong foundation and deep roots in God’s Word.  They need to be fed “the milk of the Word” until they have a firm grasp of the basics.  If you dump too much “meat” on them too fast, they become discouraged and miss much of the vital foundation laying process.

They require protection from predators.  Satan has an army of detractors that thrive on causing confusion and false teaching.  Satan likes to push new believers faster than they are ready.  This puts them in danger because they don’t have a spiritual foundation that will stand in storms and testing.  You will know if this is happening because they tend to “major on the minors”.  They focus on insignificant divisive things that leave them weak and vulnerable and fail to grasp the vital meat & potatoes that God provides for their spiritual health.

I could go on with this but a passage of God’s Word does a wonderful job of explaining this in Matthew 13:

³ He told many stories in the form of parables, such as this one: “Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds.⁴ As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them. ⁵ Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. ⁶ But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since they didn’t have deep roots, they died. ⁷ Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants. ⁸ Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted!

¹⁸ “Now listen to the explanation of the parable about the farmer planting seeds: ¹⁹ The seed that fell on the footpath represents those who hear the message about the Kingdom and don’t understand it.Then the evil one comes and snatches away the seed that was planted in their hearts. ²⁰ The seed on the rocky soil represents those who hear the message and immediately receive it with joy. ²¹ But since they don’t have deep roots, they don’t last long. They fall away as soon as they have problems or are persecuted for believing God’s word. ²² The seed that fell among the thorns represents those who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life and the lure of wealth, so no fruit is produced. ²³ The seed that fell on good soil represents those who truly hear and understand God’s word and produce a harvest of thirty, sixty, or even a hundred times as much as had been planted!” Matthew 13:

Avoiding Danger

Twice today I was asked an interesting question.

Truth is, it had never crossed my mind until someone mentioned it. Once it was brought to my attention, well, the bell can't be unrung. Sort of like having someone ask you how you got a dent in the side of your car. Until someone pointed it out, you never noticed it. However, once you were aware of it, it is like a sliver in your brain.

The question is this: "How do I keep from becoming emotionally and spiritually
depleted after spending so much time meeting the needs of others?"

Pretty interesting question.

Because our society is built on the premise that: Busyness = Significance

Rather than explore the problem, which everyone is already aware of, I would like to take a couple minutes and talk about my personal "spiritual safeguard system".

I pray that the good Lord will lead you to consider a couple points I have learned. And these points will be used to increase your faith in God.

#1. I listen to God
I know there is much debate and controversy over how and when God speaks.
But I am here to tell you that if you own a Bible, you can hear God speak.
Step #1 is open your Bible.
Step #2 is read your Bible
Step #3 is study your Bible
Step #4 is memorize your Bible
Step #5 is meditate on your Bible
I guarantee if you follow these 5 steps, you will be well on your way to hearing God.
So, exactly what does God's voice sound like? I'm glad you asked:
"And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper." 1 Kings 19:12 NLT

#2. I listen to my wife
The good Lord provided me a wife that is much smarter in some areas than I.
And she is a woman of few words, so when she speaks, I pay attention.
And outside of the good Lord, NO ONE knows me better than Michele.
I believe with all my heart that God designed her with gifts to counsel me.
My point is this, Michele is my first line of defense against burn out.

#3. I listen to my dad
I am guilty of the age old tradition that says, the older you get -- the smarter your dad gets.
For years, I have went to my dad for counsel
and for years, he has calmed me down and
advised me to look at situations rationally and
from God's perspective.

#4. I listen to my Church Elders
Finally, I am blessed with Church Elders that love God
and are devoted to leading a Church that glorifies God.
I choose to submit to their counsel, leadership, and
vision. This serves as a safety net for both me and the
Church. By being accountable to them, I am obeying
Proverbs 15:22, "Plans go wrong for lack of advice;
but many advisors bring success"

I have many other safeguards in place to insure I don't
"burn out" or "go astray" -- but these 4 are my first lines
of defense.

I close this blog with one of my favorite passages:

"He heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds.
He counts the stars and calls them all by name.
How great is our Lord!
His power is absolute!
His understanding is beyond comprehension!"
Psalm 147:3-5 NLT