I love a good story. This one is about a midwestern farmer. Apparently, one night a fierce desert storm struck with rain, hail, and a high wind. At daybreak, feeling sick and fearing what he might find, the farmer went to survey his loss.

The hail had beaten the garden into the ground; the house was partially unroofed; the henhouse had blown away and dead chickens were scattered about. Destruction and devastation were everywhere.

While standing dazed, evaluating the mess and wondering about the future, the farmer heard a stirring in the lumber pile that was the remains of the henhouse. A rooster was climbing up and continued until he had mounted the highest board in the pile.

That old rooster was dripping wet, and most of his feathers were blown away. But as the sun came over the eastern horizon, he flapped his bony wings and proudly crowed. (From 750 Illustrations for Preachers, Teachers and Writers)

It seems that the rooster couldn’t help it – he was created to crow, it was his job to announce a new day, and he just had to do so.

You and I are supposed to be that crow. We are created with a set of skills, opportunities and spiritual gifts. And it’s our job to use them, as we engage in holy battle.

Some days, that is very hard to do. We might be in a season of spiritual failure. Our resolve might be waning. But we cannot just sit back and allow a season of weakness to become a lifetime of feebleness.

We must not allow Satan to gain any advantage as we fight for our sanctification. We truly are set apart for a purpose, a purpose designed by God.

We might be a bit strung out, missing most of our pin feathers, weary and confused but we must keep moving forward. With God’s Word as our guide, we press on towards holiness.

So, this week let’s clamber up on a high perch and let our “cock-a-doodle-do” be heard.