A Cackling Hen

I did not grow up on a farm, but I am the son of parents who did.  And, my early memories are of going out in the country to visit uncles and aunts and cousins who lived on farms.  I was always envious of their world.  It was the world of water wells, water buckets and long handled dippers on the front porch, outhouses, mules, chickens, and yards that were swept instead of mowed.  The first thing I ever said I wanted to be was a farmer.  Somehow, that got swept under the rug with a call to preach and only now in retirement have I finally arrived at the farm.

 

It is an interesting place to live.  It is a place with a huge learning curve.  Today while working in the garden I stopped in amazement to listen to the hen in the coop laying an egg.  I am sure the neighbors across the hay field must have heard her loud cackling which announced her moment of laying.  I have no idea why hens cackle when laying an egg.  Maybe it is a shout of joy, or relief, or celebration, a moment of bragging, or maybe an invitation to come and get tomorrow's breakfast. As I paused to listen, it was like a reminder that midst all the trouble of the day, the order of things is still unfolding according to the plan of the Creator.

 

It is easy to lose sight of this truth with today's overwhelming trouble.  It seems like order has gone off the rails and chaos has gained an upper hand.  Why things are like they are I no more understand than cackling hens.  But, I long ago learned that understanding is not necessary, or required.  I am simply a part of the creation.  Oftentimes the words of the Apostle Paul serve as a marker for the journey into unmarked and unwalked territory.  In Philippians 4:11 he wrote, "I have learned to be content with whatever I have..."  While I do not walk this talk as well as the Apostle, it is a word which beckons me to go forward believing that the One who leads will provide whatever is needed in these times of trouble.