THE RUN-AWAY CHICKENS
The account of the “Runaway chickens” goes back to the early 1960s. It took place at the home of one of my family’s dearest friends, the “Teal” family. The family consisted of Earl Teal, who was from Germany, his wife, who was from Sweden, and their daughter, Glenda, who at that time was in her 20s.
They had a spacious home somewhere in New York where we lived. They had a large property which had areas where different kinds of vegetables grew, including strawberry plants. There was a rock wall that separated their property from the woods, which they believed was built during the colonial days.
Best of all, they had a chicken coop where they had about, well, one could say, about 20 or so chickens with one rooster who was in charge of the whole coop. I remember the times we visited the Teals when Glenda would take me to the chicken coop to collect the eggs. She would give me a small basket and we would go back to the house when we had finished.
Then we would sit in the living room and listen to the conversations of Glenda’s mom and dad with my parents. I guess I was just too small to contribute anything worthwhile, so I just sat there and listened. Mrs. Teal once related the time when her dog “Fritz” who was their German Shepherd watchdog, almost attacked her. She was coming home from shopping, and it was dark. When she entered the house, she forgot to turn on the light. Fritz may have thought it was a burglar, and he growled and jumped on Mrs. Teal. She just yelled out “F R I T Z!”
The dog just whimpered and sank to her feet. No, it wasn’t a burglar; it was his mistress, owner, and loving friend. It was just too dark at that moment to distinguish, but the voice was recognizable.
Now it happened that during one of our visits to the Teals that Glenda took me out to the chicken coop. I wanted to stay and watch the chickens a bit longer, so Glenda left me with them and returned to the house with the eggs that we collected. I returned about one-half hour later.
Now we could see the chicken coop from the living room as there was a large window that looked out over most of the front yard. All of a sudden, my mom yelled;
“The chickens, they’re loose!”
Well, All I can say is that I probably forgot to close the gate all the way, and the chickens found their way out. They were all having a great time exploring the property, and some were even close to the rock wall.
“Did you let those chickens out?” asked my mom a bit crossly.
“Don’t worry about them, Ann,” replied Mrs. Teal very calmly, “They’ll come back at nightfall. They know where they live. It has happened before.”
We left to return home in our 1960 Studebaker, and the chickens were still outside, running around. Mom was still upset until Mrs. Teal called our house, saying;
“They’re all back in the coop.” So, they all came home after all. All’s well that ends well, I guess.
In the LORD’s family, there are times when his children run astray. They see an opening that seems very interesting. A glimpse into the world of pleasures, of tempting territories. Some prodigal sons and daughters leave the coop and run here and there. Yet the time comes when they remember who feeds them. It is their master, their LORD, and Redeemer who always has their food ready, the Bread of Life and the Living Water.
All they need to do is remember where the coop is. After all, they left it, they should know where it is. If they are truly the LORD’s children, “B’nei HaShem”, then they will return. They will return to Abba’s house, which is where they belong.
The account of the “Runaway chickens” goes back to the early 1960s. It took place at the home of one of my family’s dearest friends, the “Teal” family. The family consisted of Earl Teal, who was from Germany, his wife, who was from Sweden, and their daughter, Glenda, who at that time was in her 20s.
They had a spacious home somewhere in New York where we lived. They had a large property which had areas where different kinds of vegetables grew, including strawberry plants. There was a rock wall that separated their property from the woods, which they believed was built during the colonial days.
Best of all, they had a chicken coop where they had about, well, one could say, about 20 or so chickens with one rooster who was in charge of the whole coop. I remember the times we visited the Teals when Glenda would take me to the chicken coop to collect the eggs. She would give me a small basket and we would go back to the house when we had finished.
Then we would sit in the living room and listen to the conversations of Glenda’s mom and dad with my parents. I guess I was just too small to contribute anything worthwhile, so I just sat there and listened. Mrs. Teal once related the time when her dog “Fritz” who was their German Shepherd watchdog, almost attacked her. She was coming home from shopping, and it was dark. When she entered the house, she forgot to turn on the light. Fritz may have thought it was a burglar, and he growled and jumped on Mrs. Teal. She just yelled out “F R I T Z!”
The dog just whimpered and sank to her feet. No, it wasn’t a burglar; it was his mistress, owner, and loving friend. It was just too dark at that moment to distinguish, but the voice was recognizable.
Now it happened that during one of our visits to the Teals that Glenda took me out to the chicken coop. I wanted to stay and watch the chickens a bit longer, so Glenda left me with them and returned to the house with the eggs that we collected. I returned about one-half hour later.
Now we could see the chicken coop from the living room as there was a large window that looked out over most of the front yard. All of a sudden, my mom yelled;
“The chickens, they’re loose!”
Well, All I can say is that I probably forgot to close the gate all the way, and the chickens found their way out. They were all having a great time exploring the property, and some were even close to the rock wall.
“Did you let those chickens out?” asked my mom a bit crossly.
“Don’t worry about them, Ann,” replied Mrs. Teal very calmly, “They’ll come back at nightfall. They know where they live. It has happened before.”
We left to return home in our 1960 Studebaker, and the chickens were still outside, running around. Mom was still upset until Mrs. Teal called our house, saying;
“They’re all back in the coop.” So, they all came home after all. All’s well that ends well, I guess.
In the LORD’s family, there are times when his children run astray. They see an opening that seems very interesting. A glimpse into the world of pleasures, of tempting territories. Some prodigal sons and daughters leave the coop and run here and there. Yet the time comes when they remember who feeds them. It is their master, their LORD, and Redeemer who always has their food ready, the Bread of Life and the Living Water.
All they need to do is remember where the coop is. After all, they left it, they should know where it is. If they are truly the LORD’s children, “B’nei HaShem”, then they will return. They will return to Abba’s house, which is where they belong.
