The Fox and the Hens
February 28, 2010
Luke 13: 31-35


The Second Sunday of Lent

When I was a boy, my friends and I used to play a game called “Fox and Geese.” It was a fairly simple game; all you needed was a large open space out-of-doors, a pair of snowshoes, and a bit of soft snow. We would begin by trampling out a circle with a cross in the middle like the diagram on the screen. We packed the snow down hard on the pathways so that we could run on them. The area in the center was called the “goal” or safe place. Once the circle was made, one person was chosen to be the fox and would chase the rest of us (the geese) until some one was caught, who then became the fox and the game started all over again. The only other rule was that the fox could not catch you while you were standing in the goal.

As I studied this morning’s scripture over this last week, playing that old game came to mind. In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus tells his followers and all of us that there will be “foxes” in this world who will make life difficult for us; who will try to keep us from the safe places and tempt us to turn away from God. He also tells them, and us, that he has come into the world to teach us about and protect us from such things, gathering us under his wing like a mother hen would her chicks.

The world can be a cold and hard place, and we cannot always stand on the safe places. As Christians we are called to go out into the world and be God’s presence for those who are in need, serving God and our neighbors whenever we can, and wherever we are called. As we do so we have to face the difficulties we meet along the path, and we have to deal with the “foxes” of our world. But the good news is that we do not have to do this alone.

God promised Abraham that he would be a shield for him and that he could depend of God’s grace. Abraham trusted in God, and God blessed him. And Paul told the church at Philippi to be strong and remain faithful as they had in the past. The church at Philippi had been the first one to be planted in Europe, and it had endured great prosecution from the Romans. In his letter, Paul called the people there to continue in their faith and continue to be a presence for Christ in the world in spite of the Roman “fox” that would try to destroy them.

And God promises us as well that as we go out into the world we will have the Lord’s protection, as we face the foxes of the world. Jesus tells us in the gospel of Matthew, “See I am sending you out into the world as sheep among wolves. Be wise and also innocent.” And that he will be with us even to the end of the world.

So go where you are sent and do what God asks of you. Foxes will confront you and try to lead you astray, but remember you are not alone. Do not fear the world, for Christ has conquered the world.

We have God’s promise through Christ that wherever we go and whatever fox we may encounter, God will be with us. We will not always be able to stand on the safe places, but we will always be safe under the protective wings of the Lord, our God.