Inspirations from the Funny Farm

Revelations 21:5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!

Lamentations 3:21-25 Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him.

A couple of days ago we decided to take an afternoon walk around our eighty acres to look for spring blossoms. I took my camera with me to capture the moments as I am always excited about the birth of spring each year. It seems that everything is dismal and gray for a few months, and then all of a sudden a little green leaf sprouts here and then another one there. Flowers and trees begin to put on new growth, and the world around us begins to change. It becomes new. Yes, my friends, spring is preparing to make its debut, and I can hardly wait. It is my favorite time of year. All the trees and barren landscapes gradually but surely become green and colorful. The birds begin singing their songs with purpose. The whole earth seems to burst forth with new life.

We too have been living in a long, dreadful winter. I’m not speaking of the outdoor temperatures. No, we have been dealing with a long, dreadful winter season of life, and it doesn’t look like spring is coming anytime soon for us. However, as Christians, we know that it is coming. We can hang our hats on that. We can not let this winter season in our lives consume us. I know the current winter of our hearts has been a long one. It has been cold, irritating, and seemingly barren at times, but we can not forget the beauty that lies above it all. Our sovereign Lord is still on the throne, and He has promised us that He will return to gather us home some day. Can you even imagine what a wondrous spring day that will be as we come out of this long, dreadful winter we have come to know as our lives recently?

We are seeing the promise of spring coming anew every morning. With each passing day, we see the announcement of spring. Our peach and pear trees and blueberry bushes have blooms covering them right now, and the appearance of these beautiful blossoms hanging on gray, leafless trees is nothing short of amazing. I can not help but be awestruck at the beauty of God’s creation. Everything is gray and dark, and then suddenly the rich colors of spring appear with vibrant pinks, yellow, and bright white blossoms. Currently, when we look around, we see a dark, gray world. We see tragedy and chaos. We see sadness and grief. We are seeing the Bible unfold right before our very eyes, and there are going to be a few birth pains as we await the arrival of our King. It is probably going to get a whole lot darker before the arrival of our King, but we need not fret or worry. We have the promise of a new spring, a new life, and I almost feel like if I stand on my tippy toes I can see it coming.

The wait is not easy. We are so excited about the return of our King, and the long winter that we are enduring is lasting much longer than we would like for it to. We may be getting tired, but we can not grow weary. We can trust that a new season full of new life is just over the horizon. Our faith assures us that we can hang on as long as it takes because we know that winter doesn’t last forever. Be on the lookout, Peeps! Spring is coming and so is our King!

I think I’ll go plant a few flowers while I wait…

Jeremiah 17:7 But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.

Psalm 28:7 The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.

Deuteronomy 31:6 So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.

Joshua 1:9 This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.

This past year has been a crazy year. It has been a year full of chaos and turmoil. We have endured a global pandemic, a fiery presidential election, riots in the streets, an impeachment trial, and then another impeachment trial, wildfires, hurricanes, and ice storms. We dealt with issues of high demand and low supply of many things considered to be daily necessities. We have learned to live and breathe in a masked society. Businesses closed. Jobs were lost. Many churches have closed their doors completely with no plans to reopen in the future. We have lost loved ones, and lives have been changed. Everything looks very different than it did one year ago. However, we continue to push forward and go with it. We run until we feel like we are running out of fuel, and we refuel and run some more, but how? How do we keep on keeping on? Where do we find the strength?

I have a meme saved on my phone that I have shared several times over the years, but today it has taken on a new meaning. The meme has a background picture of an old, burly looking bull, and it reads, “Trustin’ in yourself for strength works about as well as ropin’ a bull off a stick horse.” I personally have never roped a bull, but I have seen many bulls roped through the years, and I am here to testify that I wouldn’t even try to rope a bull off of a sturdy, fast moving horse much less attempt it off of a stick horse. Bulls are big, beautiful animals. They are muscular and strong, but they are also sometimes unreliable. I’ve had a bull charge toward me more than once. Even my pet bull, McLeod, charged at me once when I was trying to move him from one field to another. For a brief second or two, I thought I would be found dead in the pine trees after being tromped on by my beloved Scottish Highland bull. The problem with this particular situation is that I was relying too much on myself and my own strength. My husband was offshore working, and the kids were at school. I’m a tough old bird, and I mistakenly assumed that I could make that bull do what I wanted just because I wanted him to do it. I did eventually get him relocated the short 20 feet I needed him to move to get him across the driveway, but it was not without much sweat, tears, literally running with the bull, coaxing, fussing, and a whole lot of prayer. I’m absolutely sure that it was the prayer that worked because nothing that I was doing with my own strength and power came close to making that bull cooperate.

Yes, my friends, we are going to run into a lot of uncooperative bulls in this life we are living. We have met quite a few obstinate ones over the past year, but praise the Lord that we do not have to try to rope these bulls in on a stick horse. We do not have to go into any battle alone. We do not have the strength to handle all of the challenges that come our way, and that is completely okay. Why? We don’t have to handle the challenges alone. The scripture is chock full of promises from our loving God that reminds us day in and day out that strength comes from Him. God has a very specific detailed plan for each of our lives, and He will stand in the gap to help you achieve exactly what He has planned for you. The lies of the enemy will try to trip us up. That old enemy is an obstinate bully, and he will throw every lie in his book at us as he tries to steal our joy in Christ. We are assured that Christ’s purpose is not to steal our joy, but to give us an abundantly rich and satisfying life in Him. The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. (John 10:10) Yes, the evil one is the thief, but our Lord gives us a purpose. When we set our eyes on him, that evil one doesn’t stand a chance!

No matter what challenge you are facing today, just remember that you are not facing it alone. You may feel weak. You may feel that you have run out of steam. You may feel like you are roping a bull from a stick horse, but let me remind you that it is not your strength that will win the battle. Call out to big guns. Cry out to Jesus. He will provide everything you need to not only survive, but to thrive. The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving. (Psalm 28:7)

Ephesians 4:32 Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Matthew 6:14 If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you.

Colossians 3:13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

Two nights ago, a few of my faith sisters and I gathered together for dinner and a ballet at our local community college. The ballet company Ballet Magnificat performed a beautifully moving ballet of the book Hiding Place which was written by Corrie Ten Boom. I’m sure you are familiar with her writings and words. Corrie was a wonderful woman who hid Jews in her home in Holland. She and her sister Betsie were later captured and taken to a concentration camp. While at the concentration camp, they were abused terribly, and her sister died while at the camp. After the war ended and freedom came to Corrie, she went to Germany to speak a message of forgiveness to an ailing country. While there she came face to face with the very guard responsible for the death of her sister. She had literally just spoken words of forgiveness, but now this person who had destroyed the life of her sister and many of her friends was seeking her forgiveness. How could she find it within herself to forgive this terrible man? I’ll let you read her words as she can explain it much better than I.

It was in a church in Munich that I saw him, a balding heavyset man in a gray overcoat, a brown felt hat clutched between his hands. People were filing out of the basement room where I had just spoken, moving along the rows of wooden chairs to the door at the rear.

It was 1947 and I had come from Holland to defeated Germany with the message that God forgives.

It was the truth they needed most to hear in that bitter, bombed-out land, and I gave them my favorite mental picture. Maybe because the sea is never far from a Hollander’s mind, I liked to think that that’s where forgiven sins were thrown.

“When we confess our sins,” I said, “God casts them into the deepest ocean, gone forever.”

The solemn faces stared back at me, not quite daring to believe. There were never questions after a talk in Germany in 1947. People stood up in silence, in silence collected their wraps, in silence left the room.

And that’s when I saw him, working his way forward against the others. One moment I saw the overcoat and the brown hat; the next, a blue uniform and a visored cap with its skull and crossbones.

It came back with a rush: the huge room with its harsh overhead lights, the pathetic pile of dresses and shoes in the center of the floor, the shame of walking naked past this man. I could see my sister’s frail form ahead of me, ribs sharp beneath the parchment skin. Betsie, how thin you were!

Betsie and I had been arrested for concealing Jews in our home during the Nazi occupation of Holland; this man had been a guard at Ravensbrück concentration camp where we were sent.

Now he was in front of me, hand thrust out: “A fine message, fräulein! How good it is to know that, as you say, all our sins are at the bottom of the sea!”

And I, who had spoken so glibly of forgiveness, fumbled in my pocketbook rather than take that hand. He would not remember me, of course–how could he remember one prisoner among those thousands of women?

But I remembered him and the leather crop swinging from his belt. It was the first time since my release that I had been face to face with one of my captors and my blood seemed to freeze.

“You mentioned Ravensbrück in your talk,” he was saying. “I was a guard in there.” No, he did not remember me.

“But since that time,” he went on, “I have become a Christian. I know that God has forgiven me for the cruel things I did there, but I would like to hear it from your lips as well. Fräulein”–again the hand came out–“will you forgive me?”

And I stood there–I whose sins had every day to be forgiven–and could not. Betsie had died in that place–could he erase her slow terrible death simply for the asking?

It could not have been many seconds that he stood there, hand held out, but to me it seemed hours as I wrestled with the most difficult thing I had ever had to do.

For I had to do it–I knew that. The message that God forgives has a prior condition: that we forgive those who have injured us. “If you do not forgive men their trespasses,” Jesus says, “neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

I knew it not only as a commandment of God, but as a daily experience. Since the end of the war I had had a home in Holland for victims of Nazi brutality.

Those who were able to forgive their former enemies were able also to return to the outside world and rebuild their lives, no matter what the physical scars. Those who nursed their bitterness remained invalids. It was as simple and as horrible as that.

And still I stood there with the coldness clutching my heart. But forgiveness is not an emotion–I knew that too. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart.

“Jesus, help me!” I prayed silently. “I can lift my hand. I can do that much. You supply the feeling.”

And so woodenly, mechanically, I thrust my hand into the one stretched out to me. And as I did, an incredible thing took place. The current started in my shoulder, raced down my arm, sprang into our joined hands. And then this healing warmth seemed to flood my whole being, bringing tears to my eyes.

“I forgive you, brother!” I cried. “With all my heart!”

For a long moment we grasped each other’s hands, the former guard and the former prisoner. I had never known God’s love so intensely as I did then.

And having thus learned to forgive in this hardest of situations, I never again had difficulty in forgiving: I wish I could say it! I wish I could say that merciful and charitable thoughts just naturally flowed from me from then on. But they didn’t.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned at 80 years of age, it’s that I can’t store up good feelings and behavior–but only draw them fresh from God each day.

Maybe I’m glad it’s that way. For every time I go to Him, He teaches me something else. I recall the time, some 15 years ago, when some Christian friends whom I loved and trusted did something which hurt me.

True forgiveness comes from a heart that belongs to Christ. It is hard to find forgiveness for those who have committed unimaginable acts. It is hard to forgive those who have hurt our family members and those that we love dearly. Yes, my friends, forgiveness is hard, but we only have to take the first step. Jesus will supply the feeling. Forgiveness is an act of the will, and the will can function regardless of the temperature of the heart. Don’t hold on to hard feelings. Holding on to a grudge is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die. We only harm ourselves. Scripture tells us to love like Jesus loves, and it also tells us to forgive like Jesus forgives. Oh, if we could only have a heart like Corrie Ten Boom and Jesus! Let us practice forgiveness today.

Romans 12:11 (NIRV) Never let the fire in your heart go out. Keep it alive. Serve the Lord.

Hebrews 12:29 (NLT) For our God is a devouring fire.

Over the past week or so, my husband and his dad have been burning the areas around the pine trees. They do this almost every year as winter comes to an end and spring begins. The fire kills the overgrowth of vegetation, weeds, and plants that do not belong, it removes dead leaves and debris, and it also helps to keep the flea, tick, and snake population under control. Controlled burns also are completed to prevent destructive wildfires. The fire acts as a sort of cleansing for the forest, and it allows the trees that are growing there to thrive because they are no longer competing with the multitude of vegetation that was growing beneath them. Every year, we set the forest on fire, and in just a matter of weeks, we will see beauty come from those ashes.

When I think about my Christian walk, I must admit that there are times when I feel like my walk with God needs to be set on fire, or maybe I just need to fan the flames. Consider that for a little while, my friend. Fire is all consuming. It burns hot and bright. It refines and purifies. Fire provides us with heat, and it emits light. Our faith walk should resemble that of a great fire. Yes, we should ask our Savior to set our souls on fire, down in the deepest recesses of our being. We should desire to burn with a fire for Christ that is all consuming, a fire that burns deep within us, and one that completely overtakes us with the refining, purifying fire of the gospel.

We should pray a prayer asking God to set us on fire, and when we do, we better get ready because a blaze is a coming! God will set us on fire by allowing the Holy Spirit to consume us without restraint or restrictions that were previously placed by our own silly selves. We will soon find that we can let go of fear, and we can totally, unconditionally trust in Christ with every aspect of our lives. We will find ourselves desiring more time with God, craving His Word, and seeking Him continually in prayer. The fire will cleanse us. It will remove all of that dead debris that we have been hanging on to for far too long. The fire will refine us and purify us making us more like Christ each day. Keeping that fire blazing hot will also help eliminate the pesky little pests in our lives…those little sins that we hold on to will be eliminated. The Holy Spirit will bring those things to our attention, and we will see them for what they are and repent and turn away from them. The fire will remove unwanted vegetation, the things that grow wild in our heart, choke us down, and prevent us from thriving in our spiritual walk. A burning fire for Christ will prevent other little fires, like tragedies, anger, bitterness, and strife, from running wild and rampant. A soul burning for Christ can’t be overcome by the wildfires of everyday life.

We often try to fill our hearts, minds, and lives with things of this world. These things can be good to an extent, but there is a problem when we allow the things of the world to consume us. If we fill ourselves with things of God, that all consuming fire will satisfy our souls like nothing else. Nothing can compare to the feeling of a heart and soul on fire for Christ.

How then do we set our souls on fire for Christ? All we have to do is simply light a match. It only takes a tiny little spark to ignite a flame. Read the Word. Pray. Ask Christ to be the ruler of your heart and your head. Ask Him to set your soul on fire for Him, and then fan those flames with prayer every chance you get.

By K.K. Hodge

1 Samuel 17:45-17 David replied to the Philistine, “You come to me with sword, spear, and javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies—the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. Today the Lord will conquer you, and I will kill you and cut off your head. And then I will give the dead bodies of your men to the birds and wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel! And everyone assembled here will know that the Lord rescues his people, but not with sword and spear. This is the Lord’s battle, and he will give you to us!”

Every single day, we wake up to a world that looks more chaotic than the day that came before. We wake up facing a new battle, or perhaps we are still trying to win the battle of the previous day. Yes, my friends, we are living in a Goliath world. There is a battle around every corner, and with the huge Goliath looking battles ensuing, to the rest of the world, we may appear to be a lanky, little shepherd boy, a teenage kid, who has no strength or might. Sometimes we too feel small to face the battle. We feel like that little shepherd boy who was too small to wear the king’s armor. We may feel that we are very minute in comparison to this giant that we are facing. If we look in the mirror of life through worldly eyes, we will indeed see ourselves as very small, and we will see the giant problems we face as humongous and overbearing, but if we look through the lens of Christ we see a completely different picture.

We can not look at our Goliaths as the world does. No, my friends, the world will lead us astray every time. The world will make us feel afraid, small, and we will feel as though we have lost the battle even before it has begun. We must only look to God first. He is bigger than any Goliath in our life. He is bigger than any battle that we are facing, and He will deliver us every single time. The armor of the world will not sit well on our shoulders. It will never fit like it is supposed to fit, but the armor of God fits perfectly every single time. Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere. (Ephesians 6:13-18)

Yes, the armor of our God fits every time, and that armor provides the exact amount of protection and strength needed when battles come our way. When a battle rages on in your life, stand firm in your faith. Before anything else, put that battle in the hands of our Savior. The definition of savior is a person who saves something or someone from danger. In Christianity, the definition of Savior is the redeemer of sin and the saver of souls. God sent His Son to be our Savior, the redeemer of our sins and the saver of our souls. Christ was the atonement for each of us so that we may have a direct line to the Father. He is our Savior! What do we need when we are facing the battles of life? We need a Savior, and fortunately we already have a Savior! So let us stand firm in our faith when we face a battle because we know that it has already been won. Stand your ground, tighten the belt of truth and put on the body armor of righteousness. Put the shoes of peace on your feet that carries the Good News. Hold up that shield of faith. Let the world know that the battle is not ours, but it is the Lords. Put on the helmet of salvation. Let that saving grace rule your head and your heart. Don’t forget the sword of the Spirit. Read the Word of God and read it often. And never, ever forget to pray.

How did David defeat Goliath? He didn’t. Oh, I know the scripture says that he threw a stone from his slingshot and struck the giant in the head and he fell, and then he cut off his head. That is true. But even David knew that he wouldn’t defeat that giant alone. He knew that he alone did not have it within to him to stand up to that giant, but David, although he was a young, ruddy boy, was already mature with the wisdom given to him by the Father. He knew that the defeat would not be from him, but rather it belonged to the Lord. David knew that the Lord would defeat Goliath. He even announced it to this giant of a man, “Today the Lord will conquer you.”

Take a few moments to consider the battles that are challenging you today. Are you trying to take on these challenges on your own? We are nothing more than a ruddy teenager coming up against a giant if we attempt to fight life’s battles alone. However, if we put on the armor of God, and we hand over the battles to our Savior, God will fight our battles for us. Keep the faith. Stand firm. Grab the sword, and stay in the Word. God will take care of the rest. We can all be a David in this crazy old world full of Goliaths. Allow God to fight for you! He never loses!

2 Timothy 2: 14 Remind everyone about these things, and command them in God’s presence to stop fighting over words. Such arguments are useless, and they can ruin those who hear them.

Philippians 2:2-5 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

There is an old saying that tells us, “You don’t have to attend every argument that you are invited to.” I think that is something that we would all do well to remember. There are people who will come and go in and out of our lives who love to argue. In the south, we call these people “pot stirrers” because they are constantly stirring the pot. If there isn’t an argument brewing, a pot stirrer will stir one up for you. Some people aren’t happy in a nice peaceful environment so they will bring up something that leads to an argument. They really know how to pour salt on to a wound. They are most happy when there is an argument ongoing. God did not design His children to be pot stirrers, and He doesn’t intend for us to attend every argument that we are invited to.

Paul reminds us in 2 Timothy that we must stop fighting over words. He tells us that such arguments are useless, and they can ruin the people that are hearing them. Let’s consider this for a moment. How can our arguments ruin the people that are hearing them? Well, my friends, for the most part, arguing is just plain bad, and if we aren’t careful, a simple argument could destroy our Christian witness. Now, that doesn’t mean that we aren’t supposed to stand up for what we know is biblically sound and right, stand up for our belief in Christ, or stand up for those who can’t. However, we must always do so with the loving attitude of Christ.

If we read a little more of this chapter we are told to avoid worthless, foolish talk that only leads to more godless behavior. This kind of talk spreads like cancer. Read that again. We are instructed to avoid worthless, foolish talk that only leads to more godless behavior. This kind of talk spreads like cancer. It spreads like cancer?! Wow! It only takes one little spark to start a fire, one cancer cell to begin the spread of cancer, and one spoken word to begin an argument. But remember, as I said earlier, just because we have been invited to the argument does not mean we have to attend.

I have four beautiful children whom I love so much, and each child (now adult) has his or her own personality, strengths, and weaknesses. Each one has their own individual quirks and tendencies. One of my sons grew up with a passion for arguing. He loved to argue. He would argue with a wall if it would entertain him. If I said black, he would say white. If I said the sun was shining and it was a beautiful day, he would point out a cloud in the distance. Yes, that boy loved to argue. I often told him that he would make a great lawyer. As a mom, I made the mistake early on of attending almost every argument this child invited me too…way more often than I should have. Why? I wanted to teach him what was right…at least what Mama thought was right. However, my “teaching” often turned into arguments, and the only lesson that was learned was that arguing with someone you love is never fun. It’s hurtful. Even if you feel like you won the argument, at what cost did you win? What price did you pay? Respect was lost. Love was not shown. And in the end, someone always leaves an argument feeling defeated.

As I have matured (still not there yet but working on it), I slowly realized that arguing with this kid was not getting either one of us anywhere. I learned to pick and choose my battles carefully. I learned to lean on the Lord for guidance. I learned to pray, and believe me, I prayed a lot. I’ll be the first to admit that it is not easy to walk away from an argument, but I will also be the first to admit that walking away from an argument will many times improve a relationship. Most of the time, if we take a few steps back and walk a few steps away, we have time to gather our thoughts and allow the Holy Spirit to work through us before we respond and spew out words that could be harmful. Take a step back, count to ten, and say a prayer before responding to an argument. You might just be surprised how much of a difference this makes.

Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people. Hold firmly to the word of life; then, on the day of Christ’s return, I will be proud that I did not run the race in vain and that my work was not useless. (Philippians 2:14-16) In a world full of pot stirrers, as Christians we should strive to be peacemakers. We must continue to be the beacon of light that this dark world is missing. We are to reflect the light of Christ in our actions and deeds. Don’t let your tongue dim your light, my friend. Shine brightly for our Savior. Don’t show up for an argument merely because you were invited. We can graciously decline those invitations, and we can lovingly reflect the light of the Lord rather than dim that light. Hold firmly to the word of Life!

This is an excerpt from my book, Inspirations from the Funny Farm. Enjoy!

Job 12:7-10 But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this? In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.

Psalm 16:11 You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Psalm 91:4 He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge, His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

Matthew 6:26 Look at the birds of the air, they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Several years ago, we decided that we would get a few chickens. My dad had raised chickens when I was younger, but this chicken farming was all new to my husband and me. We figured that we would get a few chickens, and then the chickens would lay a few eggs, and it would be a good learning experience for the kids. Besides, how hard could raising a few birds be? Plus, the chickens would provide our breakfast hot and fresh every day. Win, win!

Before we go any further though, I am aching to answer that age-old question: what came first: the chicken or the egg? Well, I think the answer is completely obvious although many may disagree. The chicken came first, of course! The Bible is my instruction manual for life, and all of the answers to all of life’s questions are right there in print. Genesis 1:21 says “So God created…every winged bird according to its kind.” It’s right there in the good Book, and it’s as plain as day. God created birds first. Genesis doesn’t say anything about God creating eggs, incubating them and waiting 28 days for them to hatch. No, it says God created birds. I have never understood why this was even debated in the past.

We picked out a few chicks, and my husband built a cute little chicken coop. It was perfect for housing a few chickens. He even divided the coop into two sections so that I could get a couple of beautiful peacocks which I will tell you more about in a bit.  We spent hours playing with our chickens every week. We could pick them up easily, hold them, cuddle them, and hug them. I even have a t-shirt that says, “have you hugged your chicken today?”

I never realized how a few chickens could change one’s life. Looking back now, I can see God’s hand in all of this. Shortly after we made a first chicken purchase, my husband had to have back surgery. He had to remain off work for three months. You don’t know my husband, but if you did, you would know that three months without working could have pretty near brought him to the brink of insanity. He is an extremely hard-working man. He gets up before the sun, and he puts in a full day’s work before most people have even gotten out of bed. Thankfully, we had the chickens. Jeff was able to piddle a little with the coops without doing anything too strenuous. 

One of my favorite bible verses comes to mind here. “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11. I fully believe that God knew my hard-working husband would soon have three months of down time, and He knew in advance that Jeff would need something to keep his mind busy while his body healed from surgery. God’s plans are always so much better than ours.  While I worried over how my husband was going to deal with three months of not being able to work, it turns out, God had worked it out already and provided him with some well needed chicken therapy! That’s what we referred to it as: “chicken therapy”. Several minutes to hours were spent out in the coop and around the coop on an almost daily basis. My husband said many times that he was so thankful for those chickens during that time in our lives. I could have never dreamed that a few chickens would be so comforting.

 We fell in love with the chickens, and we decided we needed more birds. Geese were our next addition. We purchased six tiny little African goslings. We knew that geese had a reputation of being unruly and downright mean, but we also knew that we would show these little babies love. We would raise our goslings with tender care, and our geese would be different! We loved them and nurtured them just like the chickens, and the goslings grew into rather large geese. They stood about waist high when they were full grown. They never showed aggression towards my husband or I, but for some reason, they just didn’t like the kids. They would squawk, make all kinds of racket, bow up and hiss, and soon they began chasing the kids all around the yard whenever the kids went to feed the birds. One day, one of the geese began chasing my son, who was around twelve at the time. When that goose finally caught him, he bit him right in the front crotch area of his pants! My son screamed. My husband had to swat the crazy goose away. I was fighting back laughter and tears as the whole scene was hilarious. Thankfully, the goose didn’t make contact with skin or with anything else that was in the vicinity where he bit. For some strange reason, from that time on, the kids refused to go feed the birds. We couldn’t allow the geese to scare the children, so they had to go. We sold them: the geese, not the children. Lesson learned. Through the years, I have learned that you can nurture a creature, in this case a goose, but you can’t change the nature of a creature. The nature is ingrained in the DNA.  The only one that can truly change the nature of a being is the good Lord Himself, and I guess the good Lord decided not to change the nature of our geese.

The geese didn’t work out, so we thought we would try guineas. I like to research any animal that we acquire, and when I read that guineas were great at protecting property and animals, and that they ate pests to boot, I was sold! We bought a few guineas, and we decided to give them a trial run. If you have never owned guinea fowl or seen a guinea, might I recommend that you google guinea images. Those little boogers are some kind of ugly! Seriously, during our times of chicken therapy, I put a lot of thought into those ugly little faces. Why in the world did God make a creature that had a face only a mother could love?

After the guineas, we added a few ducks and some turkeys to our brood. Our fine feathered friendly farm was growing by leaps and bounds. We bought a Standard Bronze turkey, and we named him Goliath. He was the largest turkey we ever had. He was humongous, and his legs were so thick it looked as if he had cankles. He so heavy that he could not fly. He followed us all over the yard waddling around like a mama at the end of her pregnancy. He even played soccer with the kids’ soccer ball. He eventually dressed out at 32 pounds, and we shared him with our pastor for Christmas dinner one year. Yep, that was one fine turkey.

The other turkeys we have raised were Eastern Wild turkeys. These are my husband’s favorites as they are the local wild turkey native to this area. They can be mean too though, especially the gobblers. However, the guineas are much meaner than the turkeys. Guineas are just regular old bullies in feathered clothing. Our turkeys used to roost on top of the chicken coop at night. The guineas would then fly up on top of the coop and walk sideways, edging their way closer to the turkeys until they pushed the turkeys completely off their roost. For no reason at all, they just shoved the poor old turkeys off their roosts.

The turkeys were for the most part gentle. We had a rogue gobbler every now and then that felt a strong desire to jump on people and attack them without warning. We also had one particular gobbler that was madly, passionately in love with my husband. I had never seen anything like it. This male turkey would strut and gobble for my husband. It was hilarious. While we were sitting outside innocently engaging in chicken therapy, this crazy gobbler would walk up and rub up against my husband, strut, and gobble, and make noises that I had not heard prior to this specific bird encounter. Strutting is an instinctive behavior, and it describes the courtship display of the wild turkey. This wild turkey was courting my husband right in front of my very eyes! The nerve of him! We laughed to the point of tears at that silly thing. He didn’t seem to care for me or my curly locks. He was only into my husband. He was very much into my husband! He would even hang out on our back porch, and he would peer in through the French doors making goo goo eyes at my husband. That crazy bird made us laugh more than any other bird! We bought him his very own hen, but he wasn’t interested in her at all.  It seems he only had eyes for Jeff!

Sometime during all this feathered frenzy, we decided to get peacocks. My hairdresser’s son was raising peacocks, and he agreed to sell us a pair. I was so excited. My husband had the coop ready, and we went and picked up a pair of beautiful Indian Blue peacocks. They were the prettiest birds I had ever seen. Those poor guineas looked even uglier at this point. We arrived home with the peacocks, put them in their new coop, and latched the door. My husband then left to go to work offshore. The next morning, I went out to feed the birds, and the peacock cage was open. The latch did not hold, and they literally flew the coop. They were new to the farm, and of course, didn’t know their way around and thus didn’t know their way home. We searched high and low, but to no avail. I decided to get another pair. I was in awe of the beauty of these lovely birds.

As I said, my husband was offshore. This meant his truck was not at home. At the time, I was driving a Toyota Camry with leather interior. It was a cool little ride. The peacocks were available for pick up, and I did not have a pickup truck to pick them up in. What was a girl to do? I covered the back seat of my car with empty feed sacks, and put the cage on top of the feed sacks and off I went. I picked up the peacocks, loaded them in the car, and all was well…for about 2 minutes. The car ride apparently scared the peacocks, and this resulted in scared peacock pooing…in the back seat…of my Camry. It was a gosh awful smell, and I had a 20 minute ride to get back home. That was the longest 20 minutes ever! I had my head hanging out of the driver’s window sucking in as much fresh air as I could to try to get the horrid odor out of my nose. I arrived home with the young peacock pair safely, and then I deodorized my car.  A few days later, a fellow church member called and asked if I had lost a peacock. Turns out, our male had been roosting in a tree at her house. We were able to bring him home too, but we used my husband’s truck this time!

Over the years, birds have come and gone. We’ve tried raising quail, pheasants, and a few other feathered friends. No matter what though, we seem to keep way more chickens on hand than we need. When we started out with chickens, no one explained chicken math to us. With chickens 1 + 1 = 15, and 20 + 20 = about a million, give or take one or two! We incubated a few eggs in the past, but we have found out that if we just leave it up to the chickens and the good Lord, they are much better incubators that we are. It seems that every few weeks we have another brood of baby chicks peeping and pecking around the property. It’s always a joy to hear those new little peeps. Unfortunately, a lot of those cute little peeps grow into big old roosters. We have more roosters than we know what to do with. The roosters are beautiful with brightly colored plumage: reds, greens, and deep black. For the most part, our roosters are not mean, but we have had a few in the past that would jump on a person for no reason whatsoever. Have you ever had the misfortune of being spurred by a rooster? I have, and sadly, I must admit, more than once. I always try to give a creature the benefit of the doubt, and give them more than one opportunity to get back into my good graces. However, if a rooster continues to jump on me and spur me after a couple of good warnings, well that rooster just may turn into a good old pot of chicken and dumplings or chicken gumbo! I don’t keep anything on the farm that can harm me or any other unknowing victim!

The birds have taught us so much. We’ve learned patience as we waited for eggs to incubate and hatch. We’ve learned a new math called chicken math which is quite different from the math we learned in grade school! We’ve seen the beauty of God’s creations with brilliant colors in each of the birds we have raised, and we’ve seen how God created each one of these creatures distinctly different with their own little personalities and quirks. Most of all, the birds taught us how to love God’s creations, and they made us want more! God created humans with the ability to love. The Bible spells out the account of the greatest love story ever written, from Creation to the Revelations, and it fills my heart with great joy. If God put so much love and thought into creating these birds of the land and the air, I can only imagine how much He must love us humans! He made us in His image so He must really love us a lot! Just the thought of the love is so awesome. The love of our Father, His attention to the details, and the way He cares for all of creation is something I will never get over! I just have to say it again, “Thank you, God!”

Luke 22:27 Who is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who sits at the table, of course. But not here! For I am among you as one who serves.

Matthew 20:25-27 But Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

I awoke this morning with my prayers and thoughts on a good friend of mine. When I think of the term “servant”, this is the person I think of. She has the true heart of a servant. She is constantly doing for others. She recognizes a need, and she meets that need. She prepares soup and cookies for the elderly. She gathers up Christmas gifts for the needy. She makes sure that the needs of those she comes in contact with are being met, no matter how big or how small the needs may be. She is literally one of those people who would give the very shirt off of her back to someone in need. Y’all, this girl is awesomeness dipped in awesome sauce! She truly has a servant’s heart. The tables have turned, and for once, we are being given the opportunity to serve her. She is going through a particularly trying time right now, and her sisters in Christ who she has served so graciously and unselfishly through the years are going to be able to do just a tiny little act of service to her. It still pales in comparison to the service that this beautiful soul has provided to our community over the years.

A servant is a person who carries out the will of another, but a faithful servant is one who carries out the will of God. Scripture reveals to us many faithful servants of God. We can read about Abraham, Moses, and David, or Mary, Esther, or Ruth. There is a big difference in being a servant and being a faithful servant of God. A faithful servant is one who is humble. This type of servant doesn’t make a big deal out of what they are doing. They serve without trying to receive glory for their actions. We may never even know the acts of service that were provided by a faithful servant, but God does. A faithful servant is faithful. Well, that sounds like a given, but it is true. A faithful servant shows up. They are there when needed. They don’t make commitments loosely. A faithful servant is available. That is a difficult thing to be in this day and age. It is hard to be available when we are dealing with all of the busyness of life, but when we are being a faithful servant of God, we make ourselves available. A faithful servant gives of his/her precious time, and gives that time freely to others for the glory of God. A faithful servant is someone who is teachable and trainable. We will never know all that we need to know for the glory of God, but when we sign up for His service, we must be willing and able to learn and grown for God’s glory.

We are all called to be faithful servants of God. We may not be called to be the Father of nations like Abraham. We may not be called to rescue God’s people from Egypt as Moses was. We will never be called to be the mother of Jesus. That was reserved for Mary only. We may not be called to save a nation as Esther did. We may not be called to follow the mother of our late husband and live in a foreign land for the glory of God as Ruth did. No, our servanthood will look a lot different, but that doesn’t mean that is is any less important. We must all be faithful in serving God on a daily basis.

Jesus came to serve, to seek, and to save. He walked among others as a true servant. He wasn’t too good for the dirty work either. He even washed the dirt off of the feet of His disciples. He showed us how to live the life of a faithful servant, and it is His desire that we follow in His footsteps. I want to be more like my friend with a faithful servant’s heart, and I really want to be more like Jesus. Being a faithful servant isn’t an obligation that we are charged to do. No, my friends, being a faithful servant is an opportunity to reflect Christ, to show His love to others, and glorify the Father. Serving God isn’t a chore. When we learn to love like Jesus loves, being a faithful servant becomes a passion. Let us get out there today and serve our risen Savior!

Romans 12:17-21 Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone. Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, “I will take revenge; I will pay them back,” says the Lord. Instead, “If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.” Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.

Proverbs 18:21 The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.

Psalm 19:14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

There is an old saying that we chanted as children, “Sticks and stones can break your bones, but words can never hurt you.” Those words were lies. Yes, it is true that sticks and stones can break bones I suppose if the sticks or stones are big enough, but words, oh my goodness, they can hurt much more than sticks and stones. How many times have we uttered words that we immediately wished that we wouldn’t have spoken? As soon as the words have left our tongues, we want to recall them, reel them back in, take them back. And when others speak hurtful words to us, our bones may not break, but our hearts sure do.

Words can bring life. Words can bring blessings. Words can speak truth, or they can speak lies. Words can bring joy, or they can deliver a death blow. Proverbs 18:21 tells us that the tongue can bring death or life, and we see this time and time again. We hear spoken words of scripture and love coming from the same mouths that later speak curse words and evil. We pray and read our Bible, and then we get in traffic behind a crazy driver and we lose our cool. How do we tame the tongue? James tells us that we can not. People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison. Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. (James 3:7-10).

Yes, my friends, our tongues are wicked, but we can choose to monitor the words that come out of our mouth. We tend to speak from the heart, and if our heart is full of Christ and things of the Lord, the words that we utter will be sweetened with the flavor of Christ. It doesn’t always come easy. Some mornings we roll out of bed, stub our toe after oversleeping because the alarm didn’t go off, rush out the door to get into our car to try to get to work on time only to end up directly behind someone’s 90 year old grandma who decided that this was precisely the right time of day to take a leisurely 30 mph drive. How we handle what just happened sets the tone for the rest of our day. We can either lose our cool and take our anger out on everyone who crosses our path for the rest of the day, or we can thank God for slowing us down. That little old grandma may have been placed in your path to prevent you from being involved in an accident. God may have needed to slow you down so that you could spend a little time talking to Him before your day really gets going. Yes, we can choose to see the hidden blessings. Don’t you see? Our attitude and the words that come out of our mouth is a matter of choice. We get to make the choice. We are in control of our tongue and our attitude. We get to choose. We make the choice!

Today, there will be many opportunities to use your words. We can choose to use our words wisely to further the kingdom, or we can use our words to kill and destroy. Our words can bring hope, strength, and courage, or they can destroy dreams, crush confidence, and really bring someone down. Today and every day we must be mindful that our words have strength. Our words can build up and bless others, or they can break them down. Let us be ever mindful to use words that are seasoned with salt and sweetened with the honey of the Holy Spirit. I’ve often heard the saying, “Is that the same mouth that you kiss your mama with?” This is spoken alluding to the fact that someone is using language that is unbecoming of one’s mother’s presence. We should also ask ourselves, “Is that the same mouth that you are praising God with?” Let us begin each day praying Psalm 19:14, May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

Matthew 25:34-36 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.

Eight years ago, my husband was building my dream barn. Yes, you read that correctly…my dream barn. We planned every detail over about a year’s period of time. When we broke ground on that barn, I was extremely excited. When we were close to completing the barn that I had already filled with critters, my husband saw an ad for some stall doors. He decided to go look at the doors, and that decision turned out to be one that would improve our meal time from that day forward. Let me explain. The man that was selling the stall doors also had a huge mahogany board that was 38 inches wide, 12 feet long, and 3 inches thick. He asked Jeff if he wanted to buy that board. Jeff at first said no. We were nearing completion of the barn, and had been paying for it as we went. We didn’t need that board, and we didn’t really need to spend any extra money on a board. They talked for a while, and the man explained that he wanted the board to be made into a table. He said someone has previously tried to buy it, but the person wanted to cut it up to make violins. He didn’t want it to be cut up into tiny pieces. He wanted it to be made into a huge table. When he learned that we have a big family, he reduced the price of the board to $700. Jeff couldn’t pass it up. He made a call that very night to a woodworker and scheduled an appointment. In my minds eye, I knew exactly what I wanted, and a few months later we had a 10 foot long solid mahogany table with ten hand crafter chairs. It was rustic, beautiful, and it completed our home.

Most days, that table sits empty as we only have three of us living at home now, my husband, myself, and our youngest. But thank God, it doesn’t stay empty for too long at a time. We completely fill up the table and all ten chairs when our kids, their spouses, our grandson, and our parents come for Sunday lunch. We frequently even overflow to the kitchen island. That table is the heart of our home. It is where friends and family gather, and it is where many major decisions have been made. We discuss world events, our daily hurdles and blessings, and important conversations have taken place at that table. Exciting announcements have been proclaimed while sitting at that table. We have laughed and shed tears while gathered there. And that table is where I sit with my coffee in hand first thing every morning to read my Bible and write a devotional. Yes, my friends, that old slab of mahogany turned out to be a true blessing. With that solid old table, we will be able to continue to invite many to come to the table at our home.

There’s another table that we have all been invited to, and that one is much more special that our well loved kitchen table. We have all been invited to dine with the King of all glory. But while we await that glorious day, we have the blessed opportunity to share our table. As children of the King, we are given the ability to show the love of Christ each and every day. We can do this by feeding the hungry, loving the unlovable, and inviting others to come to the table. We can seize those opportunities to really share and show the love of Christ, share the gospel, and invite others to come to the table of the King. Whether your table is big or small, wooden or glass, take every opportunity to invite others to come to the table. Open your heart and your home when possible, and use every chance you get to share Christ so that everyone comes to the table of our Lord and Savior!