Call Me Chicken

I love chickens. There is something unexplainably calming about watching them meander the yard looking for a tasty treat. Their personalities are unique and quirky, which is a good fit for our family.

I’m not sure how I first decided I would like to have chickens, but when we moved into a home that had an acre lot, I set my sights on owning these sweet creatures. My husband was not so easily convinced. In his defense, most things do end up falling back on his shoulders, and he was not convinced that the kids and I would be faithful farmers. To show him how serious I was, I checked out every book in the library on chickens and read each one. Every single one.

By no means was I an expert, but I certainly was not making an impulse decision. Since we were new to the area, I also made the plea that having fresh eggs would make for a nice neighborly gift. His soft spot for hospitality was what eventually won him over. Right around that time we heard that someone in our church had to sell their three hens and small coop since their homeowner's association would not allow chickens. And just like that, the obsession began.

The next spring we decided to try our hand at raising chicks. Since the three chicks would quickly grow into hens, we would also need a bigger coop. Year after year this pattern continued. We now have two coops and sixteen hens. Our daughters have created a little side business they named Chicas Chickens. They do the majority of the chicken chores and then get to sell the extra eggs we collect to our extended family.

Naming each chicken has become another fun activity. Just by hearing the chicken’s name, you’d have a pretty good idea which family member picked the name. We have the outdoorsy group of chickens named Black Bear, Berry, Shadow and Big Foot. Then the superhero group named Batman, Robin, Clark, and Captain. Of course, you can’t forget the princesses Ariel, Snow, and Gretel. We like to joke that my daughter was hungry when she named her two newest chicks Oatmeal and Olive. I thought my two hens looked like the queens of the group so their names are Esther and Vashti.

Certainly, the greatest draw to owning chickens is heading out to the coops each day and discovering a freshly laid egg. It never gets old seeing the beautiful colors of each egg. Now that we have some older hens in our flock, it is rare to have a day when every hen lays an egg. However, when it does happen, we call it a “Golden Egg Day.”

I expected to like having fresh eggs each day, but I didn’t expect to like the actual chickens as much as I do. I was surprised to learn how much personality each hen has and how bonded they become to their people. When we are home, we often let our hens free range in the yard. Where the people are, the chickens will soon follow. They love to be near us and their non-stop cooing is a sweet comfort. I admit it, I’ve become a crazy chicken lady as I pretend to know what they are saying and talk back to them.

Everyone’s new favorite hen is our chicken named Oatmeal. She is an especially affectionate chicken. Even our four-year-old, Miles, is easily able to pet her. Oatmeal is always the first chicken to come running and say “hello.” She has recently discovered how to climb the steps of our deck. I was rather alarmed to hear a loud bang on our glass door the other day. When I went to investigate, I saw Oatmeal staring through the window pane at me. Now that she knows where her people are, she regularly comes up on the deck to peck at the door until someone comes and pays attention to her.

Who knew chickens could be so friendly?

I’m sure by now I have already convinced you of the joys of owning chickens and many will soon be joining me in the adventure, but I haven’t even told you my favorite part yet. Chickens are the Barnabas’ of the animal kingdom. The name Barnabas means “son of encouragement.” Barnabas was a disciple of Christ and was the apostle Paul’s companion on several missionary journeys. Barnabas was not his birth name though. His birth name was Joseph (Acts 4:36). Barnabas was his nickname. He was so encouraging that it became his name! What a powerful legacy to have!

Barnabas was sent by the Jerusalem church to Antioch. Acts 11:23-24 describes his arrival, “When he came and saw the grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose, for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.” Barnabas was an encourager to those he ministered to and with.

So what in the world does Barnabas have to do with chickens? Well, in all my reading and researching, no one ever wrote about how noisy chickens are. Sure, I knew the roosters crowed, but what about hens. In children’s books you may have learned that chickens cluck, but when and why?

Most of the time, hens are quiet except for a gentle cooing sound. There is, however, one exception. When a chicken lays an egg, all manner of clucking breaks lose. The beautiful thing about chickens is that not only does the hen who laid the egg start clucking loudly, but so do all the other hens in the close proximity. This clucking has gotten so loud at times that we have had to walk out to the coops and calm the chickens down, afraid the loud ruckus would disturb the neighbors.

We have one sweet mamma hen named Snow. We got her from a friend, so we aren’t sure exactly how old she is. Most likely she has not laid an egg in quite some time. This does not stop her from loudly encouraging when another hen lays an egg. In fact, I think she is more excited than the hen who laid the egg.

This got me thinking, what if we were more like chickens? We all know the sign of a good friend is someone who will celebrate when you are celebrating and cry when you are crying. I tend to think it is easier to do the crying than the celebrating. Someone else’s success tends to make us feel insecure with our own shortcomings. We have all been there. Instead of celebrating with reckless abandon for our friend’s “egg,” we start to wonder what it would be like to have that egg in our basket. Egg envy rears its ugly head.

What we need is a shift in perspective. The apostles knew they all were given the same commission. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). Every sermon, missionary journey, or healing served the greater good of carrying out Christ’s instructions to them.

I think it can be easy to forget that this is still the commission for the church of today. If you are a Christian, Christ’s glory is our goal in all things. Our giftings and talents are to serve the greater good. What would change within our churches and girlfriend gatherings if we saw each other’s successes as a greater opportunity for the fulfillment of Christ’s commission? We are all on the same team, striving toward the same goal.

We are all on the same team.

Once we realize that all the accolades, promotions, achievements, and accomplishments are meant to bring glory to God, then true heartfelt celebration can begin. A win for you is a win for me because I’m on your team!

I want to learn how to be the kind of encourager that cheers the loudest for someone else’s “egg.” Imagine if the encouragement was so loud coming out of our churches that someone might worry it would disturb the neighbors? I think the hens got it right. Go ahead, call me “chicken,” and to God be the glory!

“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”

1 Thessalonians 5:11.