I’m so happy that I get gorgeous farm fresh eggs whenever I desire.   You see my Dad and Mom raise laying hens,  so eggs are abundant and delicious.
I was making a coffee one day thinking about how long it took for those little ladies to start laying after they hatched.  It took months!  Six months for those chicks to be mature enough to start laying eggs.   Six months,  of care,  six months of only giving and getting nothing in return.   Some would look at that and write that task off and in doing so they would miss out on the process.  The value of giving with nothing being returned or even expected.   Nurturing something that only takes,  stinks,  pecks,  poops and leaves nothing but a mess to clean up for six months isn’t for the faint of heart.
The parallels in life are obvious…. Marriage,  friendship,  a working relationship and on and on.   Many of us currently live life expecting return when we do things.   We had better get return from our husbands first and foremost right? Well in a perfect sinless world yes!  But do we live in a perfect sinless world?  Sadly no.  My parent’s hens make me think about how I often hold back when I get nothing out of something.   Seeing how I rob others when I do that takes from what they might really,  and desperately, need.   How responding to my husband by “shutting down”,  could be causing him a great deal of discomfort, when he just needs someone who’s committed to take care of him.   To give, nurture, and love without expectation of return.   To get dirty in the “coop”  to clean it out, to make it dry and comfortable knowing nothing may be coming my way until maturity is reached.   To understand that God calls me to be filled with His Spirit,  with His love that shows me the very definition of selflessness,  dedication and commitment, without payout.  (Galatians 5:22 22.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.)
To freely offer the “fruit”  the Spirit gives me toward others without expectation of repayment, frees me from the bondage of “getting what I deserve”. Those selfish thoughts of  “what about my rights” or “what about what I’m owed” are struck down when selfless love and dedication are given without expecting return.

I will work in the “coop” and continue to clean it up,  dry it out,  and make it warm so it’s a healthy place for good things to hatch.

With Love,

Chrissy Benoit