Under Cover

"How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings—but you were not willing!"

—Jesus

As He stood on a hillside overlooking the city of Jerusalem—Jesus wept for His chosen people, Israel—because they rejected Him. They turned Him away, mocking Him, and were plotting to kill Him, arrogantly saying: 

"We will not have this Man rule over us!"

For years I had the same arrogant attitude towards Christ.  

"I'm fine. I don't need a Savior!"

Look at the love and gentleness of the mother hen in the picture above. She tenderly gathers her chicks under her wings. There is warmth, safety, and most of all—closeness and intimacy—under the "shadow of her wings."

That loving tenderness is the heart of Jesus towards you and me.

Jesus does not want to rule over you like a tyrant or a bully. He wants to gather you to Himself, where He can care for you, talk with you, teach you, help you, protect you, provide for you, and just love you.

The question is—are you willing?

My sweet mother, now in Heaven with Jesus, preached the loving truth about Jesus' love to me for years. And, loving my mom as I do, I always politely said to her, "Mom, I'm really glad that you found something that works for you. But I don't need that. I'm a good person. I don't need a Savior."

"I'm fine."

But the sad truth is, I was not "fine."

It was the early 80's and my wife and I were not yet married at the time. We were living together, and we were as selfish and self-centered as any two people you could ever meet. Our life together was an emotional roller coaster. We were high as a kite on 'love' one day, and hatefully tearing each others hearts out the next. I shudder when I think back on how brutal, spiteful and malicious our words and actions were towards each other in those early years together.

I was oil, and she was water. We just didn't mix.

We finally got married in 1987, but I had to ask her to marry me four times before she said "yes."

However, over a period of about ten years, we went through six or seven separations, two divorce proceedings, and I betrayed her by committing adultery. By the world's standards, without question, we should absolutely be a divorce statistic today.  

But in spite of our destructive and tumultuous roller coaster life, destined for divorce and heartache—here were are, 30 years later—happier together than I ever thought possible. How I always hoped it would be.

How can this be?

We surrendered our hearts and our hurts to Jesus—allowing Him to gather us to Himself, as a mother hen gathers her chicks under her wings. And we are now just like the two little chicks in the picture above.

We are under cover. 

God has given every human being the gift of free will. And our free will can be either a blessing, or a curse.

It's all about what or Who we choose.

"How precious is Your loving kindness O' God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings." (Psalm 36:7)

My wife and I, by our own free will, had to choose to place our trust in Jesus. Our marriage was in a slow, downward spiral into destruction and darkness. But all the while, Jesus, with outstretched arm, was reaching out to us, calling us to come and abide under His love and protective covering.

And we still have to choose every day to remain under His covering. 

He promised that He will never leave us or forsake us. But if we choose to step outside of His protective covering and live in a way that is contrary to His will, then we put ourselves in harm's way. 

Think of the story of the prodigal son.

"A certain man had two sons. And the younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the portion of inheritance that falls to me.’ So he divided to them his livelihood. And not many days after, the younger son gathered all together, journeyed to a far country, and there wasted his possessions with prodigal living. But when he had spent all, there arose a severe famine in that land, and he began to be in want. Then he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would gladly have filled his stomach with the pods that the swine ate, and no one gave him anything.

But when he came to himself, he said, 'Father I have sinned against Heaven and before you, and I am no longer worthy to be called your son..."

“And he arose and came to his father. But when he was still a great way off, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and fell on his neck and kissed him. And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight, and am no longer worthy to be called your son.’" (Luke 15:11-21)

What really stands out to me in this story is that the father never goes out and chases after his son. He waits patiently for him to come home. Finally the son comes to his senses and heads back home to his father. And, seeing his son coming from a distance, he has compassion and rushes out to meet him, and hugs him and kisses him.

That's how God is with us. 

He is always there for you. He never changes, He'll never leave you or forsake you. But you can choose to leave and forsake Him. You can choose to step out from under His protective covering.

The little chicks in the picture above are safe and warm under mama's wings. There is closeness with her. There is intimacy of relationship. There is protection. There is provision.

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord; 'He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him will I trust." (Psalm 91)

Jesus wept for His people because they chose to reject His love. 

He came to gather His people to Himself—just as a mother hen tenderly gather her chicks under the warmth, closeness, and protection of her wings.

But they were not willing.

—Are you willing?

—God is Love, and Love Never Fails.