I volunteer at a community garden in the middle of New York City. We have raised beds, native plants, a compost system, and chickens. Yes, chickens. In the middle of Manhattan.

Chickens are greedy creatures. If they think they can get food, or if they think it might be food, they will do everything they can to have access to it, even if they know they shouldn’t, and even if they don’t need it. These chickens are well-fed; they get the chicken-food version of Michelin-star fare twice a day, and they get to spend their days roaming and scratching and pecking in our large garden for bugs and worms. More than that, garden volunteers and visitors regularly bring our chickens treats in the form of veggies, fruits, oats, bread, and so on. These chickens have it all. We love our chickens.

And yet, when our growing season began last year, our chickens were not satisfied with everything we already gave them – they had to also snap up every little green thing that popped up out of the ground or that we transplanted into a bed or a pot. Just when we thought they’d leave it alone, we’d turn around and the plant would be totally ruined.

So we covered our pots and our beds with fences. But they would reach their little necks in as far as they could and still ate most of our plants down. Sometimes someone would leave a gate open in a plant bed, and within minutes the chickens had gotten in and eaten or uprooted every single plant.

We lost hundreds of dollars of plants, and so, so many hours, to these chickens last year.

This year, after surveying other garden volunteers for their solutions, we now have a fence crossing the garden to keep our chickens out of our vegetable-growing area of the garden, at least until our plants get tall enough to hold their own.

It’s a little sad to see how the chickens have less space to roam, but they’ll still have plenty of space. And more than that, our plants will finally get a chance to grow unhindered by the chickens. That is, assuming our members keep the gate closed.

As I was reflecting on this fence, I turned this thought over to the Lord. “Lord, where am I a chicken in need of a fence to keep me out of what I need to leave alone?” And also, “Lord, where am I a plant that needs a fence to keep out the chickens that would tear me down?” Put another way, “what are the plants that need protection, and the chickens that need to be held back from their own greediness, in my life?”

Often, when I think of a fence, I think of limitations to access – like immigrants at the American border, or someone fencing their property to indicate ‘this is mine; do not trespass’ to others. It’s usually a negative connotation in my mind.

But it’s also true that there are times when fences are good, and needed, because we can’t figure out the limitations for ourselves – either we get into things we don’t need that harm ourselves or others, or others get in to us and tear us down before we even get a chance to thrive. In short, fences can also mean protection.

So I find myself, today, asking the question, “Lord, what are the fences I need in my life or in this season?”

• It could be fasting from something that keeps me from the Lord – perhaps television, or certain music, or an activity.
• It could be setting up a budget that keeps me from greed – where I set aside money toward generosity or toward the blessing of others. It could also be setting my time aside to serve others and not just myself.
• It could be taking extra care to consider who I share the vulnerable parts of my life with, or choosing carefully who I involve in the newer areas of growth in my life, so new areas I’m growing into life and health don’t get shot down by careless or insensitive people.
• It could also be asking for prayer, or learning spiritual warfare, for an area of temptation in my life.

Depending on the situation, these fences may not need to stay up forever. In our garden, we are hoping out plants will be tall enough and established enough that by May and we can remove the fence. But it’s possible some plants will still be too vulnerable to our chickens – like lettuce or strawberries – in which case we will still have to protect those plants (but, if you follow me, we will have to protect only those plants).

What about you? What are the fences you have already set up in your life? Are there fences that can be taken down because you’re now strong enough in that area?

Are there fences that need to be put up in your life because it’s new growth or too easily attacked by others?

Are there fences that need to be put up to keep you out of something that you’re inclined to destroy for yourself or for others?