We drag our feet and fight changes.
This past week marked the time to move my hens from their brooder, a small temporary housing for young chickens, to their coop, a larger insulated permanent structure. Everything about the coop is better for the female fowl, yet I have no way to explain that to them. Nothing I did convinced them to go in through the door. I put food and dead bugs inside to draw them in, I poked them from behind to push them in, and I shut off their access to the brooder so they had nowhere else to go. They resisted my every encouragement.
The Peel
Ben is no different. He has every reason to be thankful for his current living situation. We prepare food the way he likes it, we provide constant companionship to do whatever he wants (except move out), and we explain that his wife cannot take care of him by herself. But, nothing we do or say will convince him that this is the better place to live. He stubbornly believes that he can have his old life back (including his health) if he can move back into his condo.
In the end, it was easier for me to catch each individual hen and place them inside the coop and shut the door behind them. In the same way, we have moved Ben into our house with much flapping and squawking and the door has been shut behind him. However, unlike the chickens, Ben has never accepted his new accommodations as his home nor adjusted to the idea of staying here.
The Fruit
If I’m honest with myself, I am also like the chickens and Ben. I remember learning that healthy eating is good for me, but I paid no attention to what I ate until I developed an auto-immune disease. I have always known that stretching and exercise are essential to longevity, but I was laissez-faire about it until I developed injuries and muscle cramps. I have always sensed that God existed, but I didn’t get serious about seeking spiritual answers until I was lonely and dissatisfied with the direction of my life.
We had the opportunity to refuse to enter the “coop” of being Ben’s caretakers, but we went in. However, my attitude has struggled to fully embrace the experience. The Lord has done a good work in me in recent years. I am learning to let go of the things that are out of my control and to appreciate the gifts he has put in their place.
I look at the chickens and think, “They would be so much happier if they would just enjoy the comforts their new home offers.” I look at Ben and think, “He would be so much happier if he were to accept his situation as inevitable and focus on how well he is being treated.” And I look at myself and I am reminded of so many reasons to be thankful. I am happier.
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Always rejoice, constantly pray, in everything give thanks. For this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (NET)
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