Securely tucked between two mountain ranges there was a slightly aging two story house which was not at all impressive. There was no running water and the only heat that was available to the family inside was a stovepipe running straight up the two stories. The pipe was hot so everyone knew well enough to not approach it.
In order to raise a family the Dad arranged to raise chickens. Everyone had to take their turn feeding the chickens and gathering the eggs. No one was exempt. Farm life was constant work. If it weren’t the chickens, it was the ravenous pigs. If not that, the cows were bulging with milk, and needed relief. No procrastinating on the farm. It was often said that idle hands were the devil’s playground. Heaven knows there was little time for that.
One day while one of the young daughter’s was about to enter the chicken house, she thought she heard a voice. Now she had heard about the little Samuel in the Bible. Surely she, a little farm girl, was not near as worthy as Samuel. She walked on beginning to throw the grain mixture left and right for the chickens to devour before it almost hit straw laden ground. As she was about to slam the chicken door shut, she heard the voice again. Of well she thought, what if it were God, and she didn’t answer? If she did answer, and it weren’t Him, surely He would forgive her.
Her goes, God, y-e-s, are you talking to me?
Suddenly in a still small voice, she heard Him say, “Yes, you hear me. I want to tell you that someday I will have you feed my people the way you are feeding these chickens, but with words that I will give you. The words will be easy. They will not be difficult. You will use what you are doing now to teach of Me. Go and gather and I’ll explain.”
Into the row of chicken nests the girl went. As she placed her hand under the first hen, she was quite shocked as at the viciousness of the hen. This monster’s beak with its woodpecker approach to her hand left her stunned.
The Lord interrupted her self-pity. “Child you forgot to wait for instructions. Cover your hand before reaching in. When you get older remember this, cover yourself daily in prayer. There are many monsters lurking outside and you’ll need Me. Now, pull that coat sleeve over your hand and quickly reach in and retrieve the egg. The girl quickly finished the job.
Next she noticed as she peered into her basket that some eggs were as white as snow and others seemed to have taken a dive in dung. Disgusting, she thought.The girl questioned God, “How about I just throw the bad ones away?” A booming voice answered, “No you can’t.” Lowing His voice, he said, “Just clean them up. I do that all the time with people. All they have to do is ask, and I clean them up so fast they don’t even know what happened. In fact, they are amazed at their transformation. Of course, I’m not. I knew they were fantastic under all that fowl smell and dirtiness of sin. I know
the talents of my children, and my children are the greatest!! I cause them to shine! Now stand up! I see a little dab on you , and its called fear. Good, now it is gone. Go clean those eggs!”
“What’s next? inquired the girl.
God said, “Hold each egg up to the light. What do you see?”
The girl did as she was told and was surprised to see that she could see clearly the inside all the eggs but one. She asked, “God what is wrong with this one. It is has a black shadow in it? What is that?
“ God said, “It is rotten, throw it away.”
“What lesson am I to learn from this?”
“Child this one represents all those people on earth who chose not to get cleaned up. I stand daily and beg each of them to come to me. I never want to give up, NEVER, but there will come a day, just like it did for this rotten egg. I will never see them again. I will never cry over them again. I will never for I really wanted to get to know them.”
God and the little girl wept.
By Rena K. Oynes – Copyright 1/7/06
thedailylily.com 
Rena, as you stated in your comment on our “Quote for the week ” Language can appear in many forms.” The language of God’s Grace and Mercy has appeared in your story of the chicken and the egg. The attitude of the learning curve brought forth the heat that will give us the heart of the Easter story, death and ressurection.
I can only comment with the words of someone greater than I in expressing truths.
Dostoyevsky writes, in Crime and Punishment, “The Christ will say to us, “Come you as well, Come drunkards, come weaklings, come forth ye children of shame…”and he will say to us, “Ye are swine, made in the Image of the beast and with his mark, but come ye also.” And, the wise men and those of understanding will say, “O, Lord, why do you receive those men?” And, He will say, “this is why I receive them, O ye of understanding, that not one of them believed himself to be worthy of this.” And He will hold out His hands to us and we shall fall down before him…and we shall weep…and we shall understand all things! Then we shall understand all things!…Lord, thy kingdom come.”
Rena this story/parable touched me, greatly. I cried when GOD and the Little Girl cried, toghether. I thought of those whom the Lord has called who refuse to be cleansed by the blood of the Lamb. Some of them are people we love, dearly. How can this be? Are they really ‘rotten eggs” destined to be discarded, cast into outer darkness where there will be “weeping and the gnashing of teeth”?(Mat.8:12) I’m afraid that the SCRIPTURE cannot be broken. AND, although the rotten egg seemed the same on the outside, when held up to the LIGHT of God’s scrutiny, it was dark and sadly wanting and Jesus said this:” If the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness.(Mat. 6;23).
As Sara commented, the “heat” comes from the LIGHT which brings forth a “hatching” a “harvest” from the egg…new life…a chick. But the rotten egg is Dead on Arrival!
Rena your story reminded me of a poem that Sara wrote and included in her book “Dressing for His Glory”. Her poem, “Gather-In” was used as a reflection for a chapter that stressed the importance of our words spoken at the right time and in the right way.
(an excerpt)
“Gather-in, Gather-in,
I hear the Master say,
Harvest time is just around the bend.
Sharpen your teeth on the word of the Lamb
And you will be in-flight on the Master’s plan.
Let your speech be changed by the measuring of His rod
to appropriate His blood for the ones on the run.”
How interesting that God used a lesson about gathering in eggs in your story to teach a little girl and tell her that one day she would feed people with the words that He would give her.
Rena this story is like reading one of the stories in the Bible…almost like the rich man and the beggar..this story has a way of bringing so many of the scripture to mind…I am reminded of one scripture Matt 7:3-5 when Jesus was teaching about taking the splinter out of ones own eye first before taking it out of ones brothers…(when the little girl in your story wnated to throw away the egg becuse it was dirty this is the scripture that came to my mind)and that God wept with the little girl over the rotten egg…I was reminded of when Jesus said He would wipe away the tears…..broken hearted for the lost (eggs)..and for the work that was not accomplished….The story makes one think and ask whats inside ?
Rena, this story truly touched my heart. I know how aggressive those hens can be when trying to get the egg. I have read this story several times. Psalms 51:1 “O loving and kind God, have mercy. Have pity upon me and take away the awful stain of my transgressions. 2 Oh, wash me, cleanse me from this guilt. Let me be pure again.” Psalms 51:10 “Create in me a new, clean heart, O God, filled with clean thoughts and right desires. 11 Don’t toss me aside, banished forever from your presence. Don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me again the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.” Psalms 51:14-15 “Don’t sentence me to death. O my God, you alone can rescue me. Then I will sing of your forgiveness, for my lips will be unsealed-oh, how I will praise you.”
Restore us daily, Lord. Cleanse us of our dirty sins. Make us new. We know we can’t hide our sins from you, Lord. Give us the obedient heart to ask for forgiveness daily. Change our hearts, Lord. Let our lips sing praises to you dear Lord. Lord, we know if it wasn’t for your mercy and grace, we would all be rotten eggs. Thank you, Lord for your mercy and grace. Let us all sing praises to our Father for what he’s done for us. Thank you, Jesus!!!