A baby chick hatched from its egg in the incubator the other day. As I held it, it chirped and snuggled into my hand. A puff of black and tan coloring. A tiny beak.

I made a little brooder for it and set the chick inside, heat lamp engaged, some food and water. She wasn’t happy though. She kept calling out. She was lonely. And she was LOUD!

I had some other chicks I had purchased and brought them up to be her buddies. Finally, in contentment, she settled down and rested against her new brooder mates.

It was a great reminder that life is best lived in community with others, and in an environment that encourages growth.

If either your community or your environment is lacking, your growth can be stunted. You can find yourself n a low-growth environment, failing to thrive, or lacking authentic community and being exceptionally lonely. Much like my baby chick who cries out when lonely, without food, or without enough water or heat.

Recently, this has been a reoccurring theme for me. Don’t misunderstand. I have great community. I am so thankful for the people who I get to do life with. But, I am missing an important piece of my brooder, my daily environment. I am missing something that can create the perfect environment for my potential growth explosion.

What do you do when you find your brooder, your environment for growth, is missing something vital? Do you lay down and give up? Do you try and fly over the side (maybe, but you probably won’t make it – you might just smack your face on the side of the brooder like my baby chick…but that’s a different story for a different post)? Do you get mad and make a mess in the environment you do have to make a point?

I think we would react just like my baby chick. We would chirp loudly so that the person who can control the brooder, the growth environment, would get involved. If the environment is found to be on point, we would search for other causes of the cries…like missing brooder mates , or for our purposes, community.

For me, to chirp loudly means to cry out to God. He is in control of my “environment,” my brooder for growth in life. It’s not as if he doesn’t already know what I need. He sees all. He knows all.

As the caretaker for my baby chick, I have to check often for what is needed. And when I hear that familiar loud chirp, I come check again to see what has changed. I enjoy hearing the chirp from my baby chick. I enjoy the fact that it is crying out for me to get involved in its little life. Perhaps God enjoys when we call for Him , too?

Yes, there is something I need. And I know that my God is able and willing to supply. Will I wait patiently for His involvement or will I create a mess trying to get what I want on my own?

God doesn’t need for us to tell Him. He knows. But He does love to communicate with us. Prayer, like a baby chick chirping, can change things. Our communication with the Father is valuable. It indicates our trust in Him, and our faith that He will get involved in our life and with our needs.

What about you? When your environment for growth is off kilter, will you cry out to God and seek His hand to correct it or will you push forward? When you find yourself feeling empty, lost, or all alone, will you cry out to the One who controls it all, or will you take the reigns and cause a mess in the environment around you?

The choice is ours to make.

“Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.” Matthew 10:29-31