TOO MANY CHICKENS

   As we rounded the curve, Bob brought the car to an abrupt stop. "What's wrong," I asked? Without replying, Bob jumped out of the car and rushed to an object in the road.  "This better be important," I thought. The children were already cranky and overdue for their naps. I was in no mood for yet another delay. All I wanted to do was to get home and put the children into bed so I could have a much needed break.
   Impatiently, I reminded Bob, I still had to fix his dinner before he left for his 3 to 11 job. Grumbling, I thought, "How am I going to fix the hamburger this time so it doesn't taste like hamburger? Will he ever finish college so we can live like normal people?" Lost in thought and feeling sorry for myself, I paid little attention to what Bob was doing.
   Finally, we were on our way again. A little annoyed, I asked, "What was that all about?" "You're not going to believe this," he started to answer. By now both little ones were protesting loudly and I would have to wait until later to see what he was talking about. As soon as we got home I put the babies to bed and got them settled for their naps. Feeling a little better I went downstairs to see what had caused our unscheduled stop.
   "This is why I stopped," Bob said. "The other cars were going around this crate and I wanted to see what was in it." On the kitchen table was a wooden crate with twenty-four chickens packed in ice. There were no markings on the crate, no identification on the inside as to where it belonged or to where it was going. We tried to discover who had lost this "treasure" but had no success. Our hearts were filled with thanksgiving at God's provision for us.
   It soon became apparent that if God had not provided the chickens we would have had very little to eat at dinner time. In the days that followed, our evening meals consisted mostly of the chicken God had provided. We couldn't even afford the hamburger that I had complained about so often.
   Many chickens later, as I was looking for something "different" to do with yet another chicken, I heard myself say, "I wish God had provided something for us that didn't have wings." How could I be so ungrateful?
   God brought to my remembrance the children of Israel in the desert. I got my Bible out and read Exodus 16. Once again I was amazed at the way God provided manna for His people. In verse 35 it reads, "And the children of Israel did eat manna forty years." Forty years! Forty years of nothing but manna! How would I react if God were to provide us with forty years of nothing but chicken dinners? Would I be like the children of Israel? Constantly remembering the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic in Egypt.
   That night, I proudly served my family another chicken dinner. The chicken was seasoned with my tears but it was served lovingly, with a repentant, thankful heart. God truly supplies our needs in so many different ways. Philippians 4:19 is such a wonderful reminder of this. 
                                                                                                                Mabel Flatt reprint from Keystone Baptist