When I was four years old we lived on the island
of Guam and one day someone gave our family six baby chicks. They were so cute!
They were fluffy and soft and constantly in motion in their new home on our
screened in back porch. I am not sure what happened to our precious pets, but
after the words ‘loud’ and ‘messy’ were heard a number of times, the chicks
disappeared.
Recently, it seems more and more people
are raising chickens in their backyard. Costco even sells a kit to build your urban
chicken coop. When my friend bought one and put it together for her two baby
chicks, I seriously thought about buying and raising chickens too. My schedule
and the amount of coyotes that live and roam in our neighborhood deterred me.
When my friend’s chickens grew to a
certain size, she took them to the vet to have their wings clipped. The vet
told her she only needed to clip one wing because if the chicken’s wings were
unbalanced they would never be able to fly. It didn’t matter what size their
wings grew to, as long as one wing was longer than the other the chickens could
not fly and would stay safely in her backyard.
Kay Arthur, in her book, Lord, Teach Me to Pray, says prayer and
God’s Word are like two wings of a bird: Both are needed if the bird is going
to fly.
I don’t know about you, but in certain
seasons of my life one of my wings is usually longer than the other. Sometimes
my prayer wing is longer when I have many things to talk to God about, and I
pour out my long list of requests to Him. But without my other wing, reading
God’s Word, I don’t hear from Him. I don’t know His thoughts or plans for me
unless I am reading His Word daily.
How about you? Are you a chicken with
one of your wings longer than the other, keeping you from flying in your
Christian walk? Or are you like an eagle with both prayer and the Word of God
propelling you higher in your journey?
But those who trust in the LORD will
find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and
not grow weary. They will walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31
