I woke up early this morning. 4:30 to be exact. Then I couldn't go back to sleep. I finally got up, got dressed, fixed myself a cup of coffee, and read this morning's paper. At 6:00 I chuckled to myself and almost laughed out loud as I heard a rooster crowing--from the bedroom. Really? Really! My son's alarm was going off. It reminded me once again that I love chickens. The crowing of a rooster, the clucking of a hen, the peeps of chicks all make me smile. I guess that is why I loved the wild chickens at Honolua Bay in Maui, Hawaii.
We went there on Thursday. As my kids got ready to snorkel, I carefully positioned my beach chair on the rocks in the shade of a large tree. As I sat there, I heard a rooster crowing loudly and clearly in the distance. I didn't see him, but his presence was definitely known. His cock-a-doodle-doos not only alerted his hens to his whereabouts, it also warned the other roosters in the area to stay away. This was his territory, and he meant business.
I don't know how many hens were under the invisible king's authority, but there were at least eight of his ladies resting in the shade of a log when we arrived. In addition, several hens were scratching in the dirt and under leaves for a tasty bug or breakfast seed for their half-grown chicks, all the while softly clucking to them.
The warmth of the sun, the splashing of the waves on the rocks, the chatter of gathering snorkelers, plus the foraging, clucking hens around my chair all ushered me into a blissful state of contentment. I had just closed my eyes and was enjoying the peaceful sounds when all of a sudden, from behind my chair, came an ear splitting COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO that brought my reverie to an abrupt halt.
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| King of the Roost--Honolua Bay, Maui, Hawaii |
Over the next few minutes he strutted his stuff behind my chair. He strutted over to visit various hens. He occasionally crowed. He even chased away a sparrow before marching off to check on other hens and other possible intruders. There was never any doubt about who was in charge at Honolua Bay.
I couldn't help but be reminded of Jesus' reference to hens and chicks in Luke 13:34b where he laments over Jerusalem, "...how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing." Watching the hens wait for slow chicks to catch up with them, and listening to their constant calling made me ever aware that if danger approached, those chicks would be under the safety of their mothers wings in seconds.
Jesus is a hen to me. He waits for me when I fall behind. He calls to me, letting me know he is near. And, in the presence of danger, he calls me under his wings for safety. I have to ask myself, again, do I run to catch up, listen when I hear his call, and flee from danger into the safety of his wings?
The answer is....At times I am a very wayward chick.
Jesus is also a rooster to me. He is constantly on guard, protecting me from dangers I am not even aware of and chasing off enemies. He proclaims his presence. I always am aware of his voice in the distance, but sometimes he startles me with his closeness, his beauty, his majesty. There is no doubt who is in control. He is truly king.
Please let me share just one more chicken thought with you. As I have been writing about the crowing rooster, these words of Jesus' keep coming to mind, "I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me." (Luke 22:34) Actually, they first came to mind when my son's alarm started crowing at 6:00 this morning. Maybe a crowing alarm would be a good way to start the day. Before my feet ever hit the floor, I could let cock-a-doodle-doo remind me to acknowledge him in all my ways this day.
"In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:6
Have a God day. I plan to.
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