As I sat listening to the saints worship God with the song, “I will sing of your love forever”, I was immediately reminded of a mother hen gathering her chicks under her wings. The defining term that came to my mind was, ‘to envelope or to wrap around (as with a blanket)’. No sooner was I reminded of these things than adjectives that describe the great love of our God and Father came flooding to my mind.
Like a hen covers her chicks under her wings, I thought of the goodness of God’s love that envelops us. The word goodness reveals the good that God wants for us. Psalm 139:17, 18 tells us that all of God’s thoughts towards us are “precious”. Were we to count them they would outnumber the sand on the seashore. The word good reveals to us that God’s love is always for our welfare, thoughts to give us a future and a hope. The word good also tells us that whatever God does for us is first-class. It is the best. The verse, “…and God saw all that He had made, and behold it was very good,” (Gen. 1:31) beautifully brings out this aspect of excellence. Let the knowledge of the goodness of God’s love envelop us like a shawl or a covering sheet.
Like a hen that covers her chicks with her wings, I thought of the kindness of God’s love that envelops us. We all know how patient His love is towards us. He bears with so many of our shortcomings. His love overflows with mercy and compassion. His love lifts us up; for a bruised reed He does not break nor does He extinguish a smouldering wick (Isa. 42:3). Let this mercy and kindness of God’s love cover us like another sheet that is wrapped around.
Like a hen covers her chicks with her wings, let God’s love that endures forever cover us completely (Psa. 136 NIV). The term “endures forever” reveals that this love never ceases. It never stops. It goes on and on and on forever. No matter where we are in our life; no matter how grave our previous mistakes, His love for us never comes to an end. Let the assurance of such an enduring love cover us like a third sheet wrapped around.
Like a hen covers her chicks under her wings, let the knowledge of God’s inseparable love wrap around us. We have often quoted Paul’s classic statement in Romans when he asked, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?” (Rom. 8:35-39). Yet great is the need for this truth to encircle us when we are swept over by life’s stormy waves and turbulent seas. The more we meditate on the term ‘inseparable’, the more we realise how close knit and tightly bound we are to this agape love of God. Try as one may, no lies of the devil can separate God from us. Should we then allow fear on our part, or discouragement or the cares and worries of life separate us from God? May the knowledge of the inseparable quality of God’s love wrap around us like a fourth sheet.
Like a hen covers her chicks under its wings, let the truth of the unfailing quality of God’s love wrap around us. The word ‘unfailing’ reveals to us that this love will never let us down. It’s a love that will never disappoint us nor will it put us to shame. It’s a love that we can rely on and depend on. We can stake all our life’s decisions with a full assurance that we are safe and secure in our never failing, dependable and trustworthy God. May such a knowledge revealed to us by the Holy Spirit of God cover us like yet another sheet wrapped around.
Like a hen covers her chicks under its wings, let the boundless love of God envelop us. Adjectives like immeasurable, fathomless, limitless, unsearchable only magnifies the beauty of this great love that God, our Father has for us through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Let this pure, selfless, rich-in-grace love tightly wrap itself around us as one more sheet of another colour.
We can sing, “I will sing of your love forever,” and yet not comprehend the greatness and beauty of the love of God. The problem with many Christians is that we often do not mean what we say (or sing). The words of Isaiah can well apply to us when he said, “This people honour Me with their lips but their heart is far away from Me” (Mt. 15:8).
The songs at the Life Group concluded with the song, “Hide me now under Your wings; Cover me within Your mighty hand. When the oceans rise and thunders roar; I will soar with You above the storm. Father You are King over the flood; I will be still and know You’re God.” Like Joseph’s cloak of many colours, may the varied colourful aspects of God’s love wrap around us. May our soul find rest under His wings. May we be still under God’s mighty hand. Such faith and rest in God's love will remove the glaring aberration between what we say and how we behave.
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