Under His Wings

[1]

                                            Monday, June 20, 2016

“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones God’s messengers!  How often I have wanted to gather your children together as a hen protects her chicks beneath her wings, but you wouldn’t let me.  And now, look, your house is abandoned and desolate.  Matthew 23:37-38^(NLT)

The protection of a mother hen is legendary.  Jesus often used common illustrations to help his disciples understand deeper, theological truths that were complex.  How a mother hen protects her chicks needs little explanation.

Hear these lines from a great old hymn of the church:

Under His wings I am safely abiding,
Tho the night deepens And tempests are wild;
Still I can trust Him, I know He will keep me,
He has redeemed me and I am His child.

Under His wings, under His wings, Who from His love can sever?
Under His wings my soul shall abide, Safely abide forever.[2]

Dr. Homer Lindsay was the long time senior pastor of First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Fla.  His was a growing, dynamic church.  I met him once in the early 1990’s.  He, like Jesus’ illustrations, was homey, clear-cut and always ready to talk about Jesus.

Dr. Lindsay delivered the commencement message at my graduation ceremony and shared how back in his early days, before TV, his parents used to order Life Magazine.  It was an important publication to them because without TV there were no pictures and the magazine had lots of them. 

In one particular issue there was a layout of storm damage, and how the hail had wrought great destruction in another part of the country.  One picture showed a mother hen with her wings outstretched, lying on the ground; the hail had killed her.  The second picture showed that somebody had picked up the mother hen and underneath her chicks were still alive.  She saw the storm coming and gathered her chicks under her wings.

She sacrificed herself so her chicks could live.

How like Jesus!

For You Today

Are you facing any storms?  If you are, remember where the wings are located.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today…have a blessed day!

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[1] Title Image: Public domain

[2] Song, "Under His Wings" written by William O. Cushing, composed by Ira D. Sankey. Public Domain.