When I was a teenager, we used to visit my mother’s village, Sevkar, during our summer and winter vacations. On one of those cold winter nights, I sneaked out to check on the animals in the barn. The moon was shining so brightly, casting a beautiful glow over the snow-covered ground. It was so cold that the water in the trough had frozen solid. As I went to chop through the ice, I saw something that moved me in a way I’ll never forget.
There, near the trough, was a hen—a small, frail bird with her wings stretched out wide, shielding her little chicks. It was freezing, the wind biting and harsh, but there she was, facing the icy gusts, her wings covering her children. That hen was tired, I could see it. But she wasn’t going to give up. She was determined to protect her little ones, no matter the cost.
That image has stayed with me ever since. It was as if God Himself was giving me a picture of His love for us. Like that hen with her wings open wide, Jesus spreads His arms on the cross, inviting us to come and find shelter under His wings—just as He lamented over Jerusalem, saying, “How often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings” (Matthew 23:37).
But here’s the key: We have to go to Him. Like those little chicks had to run to the hen for protection, we have to make the choice to go to Jesus. We have to stop running in every direction, thinking we can make it on our own, and let Him gather us in. With His outstretched arms on the cross, He invites us to come in from the cold, to stop trying to fight battles on our own, and to allow Him to gather us in His arms.
Friends, I don’t know what battles you’re facing today, what cold winds are blowing in your life. Whatever it is, Jesus is standing there, arms wide open, saying, “Come to me. Let me be your refuge. Let me carry your burdens.” And when we do, we’ll find that His arms are not just wide enough to carry our burdens—they’re strong enough to lead us through any storm.
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