These Holy Pigs

  It seemed right to send them out just as I brought them in. Through song. A simple homemade song by my Great Aunt May and a hymn of gratitude that welcomed the Creator to the moment.

Great is Thy faithfulness. Great is Thy faithfulness.

Morning by morning new mercies I see.

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided.

Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.

The morning stung with chill and an act of death we’ve been anticipating since June.  We welcomed the baby pigs, we held them when they were tiny, we winced at their outrageous squeals.

We faithfully fed them and made sure the water was always enough. We hosed them down on hot summer days, we laid fresh hay to keep their environment clean and warm. We patted them and ran with them. We talked with them and I sang to them….all while knowing they would die. By our hand.* Their life was always meant as a sacrifice. And somehow it made the time with them sweeter, more meaningful. We treasured their days and appreciated the personality they brought to our land. And we valued them, not just for who they were in those moments, but for what they would become to us: a provision.

And in this act, Old Testament moments were made real as we humbly took a life in order to make a provision for our family. Those expectations of sacrifice, the laws given to make them holy and clean, the event that God chose for his people to connect with him, to reconcile. It wasn’t about killing the animal. It wasn’t about all the laws. It was about the sacrifice of life, the spilling of blood, the relationship with the Creator. And all along, it was teaching them about Jesus. The lamb who lived to die, who lived to be sacrificed as a provision for the whole world.

We stood and watched, all seven of us. Because we felt like we owed it to these sisters. If we are able to enjoy their provision, we ought to take part in the moment they would become it. We’ve been far removed from the most sacred part of our eating for much too long. We delight in knowing that in our growing, in our raising, in these living sacrifices, we will draw near to our Creator –the Only One who can transform death into a provision; the Only One who brings life, not just after death, but through death. These pigs became holy yesterday. This God, who continually reveals Himself to creation, through creation – He never ceases to amaze. May I live as a sacrifice — a provision of life and grace to those around me. For the days are sweeter when you live knowing all of life is holy, and all of life is dying, and all of life is restored to its Creator through his provision of Love. * We are thankful for our friends who came and helped us in the sacrificial act. They were the perfect balance of confidence and humility, strength and tenderness needed in the moment.