This blogpost features some of my thoughts and a half-sheet activity page to complement the Come Follow Me (CFM) reading for March 31 - April 6, which includes Doctrine and Covenants 29. Click here for an index and links to my CFM blogposts for other weeks.
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MY THOUGHTS ON A HEN GATHERING HER CHICKS
When I read this week's Come, Follow Me reading, I immediately paused on D&C 29:2.
"Who will gather his people even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, even as many as will hearken to my voice and humble themselves before me, and call upon me in mighty prayer."
I think it stuck out to me because it was the first time I was realizing (no, I'm not a scriptorian) that the imagery of Christ gathering His people like a "hen gathereth her chickens under her wings" is used throughout the scriptures. You can find this analogy with very similar wording in the Old and New Testaments, the Book of Mormon, and in the Doctrine and Covenants. I had read it many times before, but had never connected that it was found so many times in the scriptures in different places.
It made me pause and consider why this same imagery was used by different writers throughout the ages. In those considerations, my mind was turned to think of our own experiences with chickens.
About a decade ago, we had friends that owned a small hobby farm who asked for volunteers to take care of some baby chicks until they were old enough to join the hens in their coop. We were very much suburbanites living a very suburban life, but we decided we could convert one of our bathtubs into an incubator for a few weeks, so my kids could have the experience of taking care of them. All in all, it was a good (and slightly smelly) experience for them to learn how to care for such helpless creatures, but we were happy to give them back to the owners when it was time.
Fast forward several years and we moved to Utah! The home we purchased here came with a chicken coop and a few chickens. We were pretty excited by it at first, but have since realized that taking care of chickens is a lot of work and they don't give as much as they take. But it's all good. We take care of them and they give us eggs when they feel like it.
Both of our separate experiences with baby chicks and then with fully grown hens has given me a new lens to consider the imagery found in these scriptures.
First off, it's hard not to think of my own "baby chicks" who needed a lot of care when they were young, but now have somehow all grown and left our coop to go off to create their own lives. I know the scattering is natural and what we want for our children, but I am filled with longing looking at the picture below. These days it is rare for our family to all be under the same roof and I miss the simplicity (though it didn't feel simple when we were living it) of having a house filled with our little people. I had no idea in the moment that picture was taken, the challenges that lay ahead very shortly, for if I had, I would have held onto them a little tighter. But God knew. And looking back I can see that he was preparing us for those challenges.
I'm not experienced enough with chickens to have ever witnessed a hen gathering her chicks, but looking at this picture, I can relate.
I very much want to protect my children from any storm that may befall them, but I've come far enough into life to realize that that's just not possible. Try as I might, I couldn't stop my daughter from developing epilepsy. I couldn't stop my son from developing leukemia. I couldn't stop my husband's job losses. I couldn't stop my child from experiencing severe mental illness. Then I realized that it's not my role, nor is it in my capacity, to STOP storms from happening. But what I can do, is follow the example of our Savior and make sure that my kids know that my arms and our "coop" are always a safe place to come back to. That no matter where their journeys take them, that they know that my love for them is unconditional.
I love this quote from October's General Conference that illustrates many of the feelings of my heart on this topic so well:
"One of the miracles of the divine economy is that when we try to share Jesus’s love, we find ourselves being filled up in a variation of the principle that “whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” Being filled with God’s love shields us in life’s storms but also makes the happy moments happier—our joyful days, when there is sunshine in the sky, are made even brighter by the sunshine in our souls." "
God's Favourite," Karl Hirst, October 2024
The storms still happen, but with God, we are better equipped to weather them. I believe that one of Satan's greatest tools is to have us believe that somehow we've messed up so much that we've fallen out of reach of Christ's atonement. He'd have us think that because our path in life is windy and hilly, that we're too far gone to qualify for God's help...and I think that's where the beauty of the imagery of a hen gathering her chicks comes into play. We are never, ever too far gone. Christ's reach is infinite and he can pull us out of our lowest lows and bring us in from the furthest path.
In the 10th Article of Faith, it reads:
"We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration of
the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the
American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth;
and, that the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory."
Gathering is an integral part of the gospel plan and just as I yearn for and treasure the moments when our family is all gathered in, I know Christ yearns for us to be able to return to Him. He doesn't stop the storms from happening, but he provides the soft place to land, as well as that sure foundation for us to hold onto when we are in the midst of them.
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These
activity sheets are designed to print double-sided and cut in half.
They're perfect for reviewing or introducing the content found in the
Come, Follow Me reading each week and would be great used in a classroom
or home setting. I have no children at home, nor do I have a calling
working with youth, so I copy these to be handed out with the sacrament
programs each week. Kids, teens, and adults enjoy them.
HERE IS THE LINK TO THE ACTIVITY SHEET (in case it's not showing below)
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💗HAPPY GENERAL CONFERENCE WEEKEND AND HAVE FUN LEARNING THE GOSPEL TOGETHER! 💗
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