You’ve heard about people living out in the sticks. There’s nothing around – just country and pasture. Mayberry – if you will. Life is simple. The area where we live used to be like that. All people used to do was work, take time with their family and go to church. Life is a little different now and so is our neighborhood. Now it is a suburban jungle. Houses and neighborhoods sprawled out all over the place where farms and forests used to live. Businesses and grocery stores are at our front door. Life is hectic. We don’t just have to work, there’s the soccer games, lots of church programs, work overtime to get that project done, exercise, the kid’s have homework, then they have another practice or game. Life is pretty complicated now.
I am reading through a one-year Bible right now and today I landed in Matthew 13 – “The Parable of the Sower.” This is one of the good parables where Jesus really takes the time to explain himself and what he means to the disciples. Remember, Jesus picked ordinary guys to do his work and they need help sometimes. I need help understanding Him most of the time as well. Anyway, what really stood out was the passage in verse 7, “Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.”
When I first read that I just glossed over and kept reading, but when I got down to Jesus’ explanation in verse 22 I had a “lightbulb” moment. Jesus explains this part of the parable like this, “The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful.”
My life has become so full of stuff that time gets away from me. The speed of life is ever increasing and technology causes everything to affect everything. We are never “off duty.”
I seem to be living in the weeds and thorns of life. The thing about thorns are once you get into a thorny bush the bush digs into your skin and holds onto you. The thorns dig into your skin and cause you pain if you pull back. I try to study my Bible every day, but that seems to be the first thing to get the boot if something “important” comes up. I guess fortunately, I have been a Christian for a long time and have had a chance to grow my relationship with my Savior. However, the way everyone’s life is today they are all going so fast and staying so busy that it doesn’t take much for things to get in your way and to clutter up your mind. Whether you are a new believer or a long-time believer you have to deal with the thorn bushes in your life.
I would encourage you to get the weed-eater out today and start cutting back some of the weeds and thorny bushes that clutter your mind and your life and keep you from blossoming into the person that you were created to be. Don’t let life get in the way and choke out the beautiful fruit that you were created to produce.