WEEK 4 – DAY 3

WARMTH WITHIN HIS WINGS

How excellent is thy lovingkindness, O God! therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings. Psalm 36:7

The picture here is of a protective mother hen guarding her baby chicks. Jesus even presented this image of Himself when He said, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not!” (Luke 13:34). I am not saying that God is female. However, He expresses the nurturing, protective heart of a mother toward her babies. One of the names for God is El Shaddai which means all-sufficient One who sustains. Shaddai has the connotation of “many-breasted.”  What a picture of the love of our God – a mother nursing her babies! Maternal instinct is to protect and provide for her children at all cost, a self-sacrificing love. The Lord is the complete personification of perfect love. The Lord Jesus laid down His life to save, to redeem His children. He is the mother hen but also the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11). You may have heard it said that, “Your mother is your mother forever. You will always be her baby.”  When we are Jesus’ lamb, His child, we are His forever. He will never let us go! John 10:27-29 “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”

We are helpless, fearful chicks; but, Father, You are like a mother hen whose wings are strong to shield us. No predator wants to come between a mother and her chicks. Thank You, Lord, that we can rest securely under Your mighty wings.