October 3, 2024 - Good Morning! It's Thursday, October 3.
Here in Shelby County, Texas we're all about . . . chickens! Raising chickens for meat is one of our biggest industries. There's a Tyson plant here and scores of chicken "farms" where half a dozen times a year thousands of chicks are delivered to run around in chicken "houses" until, in just a few weeks, they're the right size for your dinner table. Each American, on average, eats over a hundred pounds of chicken each year. Over 10 billion chickens are raised annually for meat. Talk about a big business!
Every Texas town has some kind of yearly festival to celebrate what's unique about that place - and to bring needed revenue into the town coffers. There's the Rose Festival in Tyler, the Strawberry Festival in Poteet, Sweetwater's Rattlesnake Roundup, and the Mosquito Festival in Clute. Mosquitoes - really? They're celebrating mosquitoes? I don't think I'm on my way to Clute any time soon. Here in Center, we celebrate Poultry Fest, and it all begins today.
For today's devotion I checked my Bible index for mentions of chickens. There are a number of them, most of little note. But we remember the haunting prophecy that Jesus shared with Peter - "Before the rooster crows you will deny me three times". I don't imagine that Peter ever forgot those words. And then there's these words - "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem . . . how often have I longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing." Matthew 23:37
These are words that Jesus spoke at the temple during the final week of His life here on earth. The Pharisees had continued to follow Him around the city, looking for incriminating evidence, hounding Him with questions. But at that moment, Jesus cut through their petty concerns, their selfish agenda, and He spoke from the heart. Talk about haunting phrases - "but you were not willing".
How often have we denied the love and the blessings and the wisdom that the Lord desires to give us? Holding on, instead, to our petty concerns, our selfish agenda. How often has He reached out to us - but we were not willing? Each of us could rephrase that verse from Matthew, removing "Jerusalem" and substituting our name.
What does God have for you today? Are you willing to accept it?
Meet you back here tomorrow,
David
cindertex50@yahoo.com
