Genesis 3:18 “The ground will produce thorns and weeds for you, and you will eat the plants of the field.”
Last night as I was brush cutting, I recalled events of my youth and it seems the only things I remember these days are the good times. One of the old memories that had dulled in my mind was that of picking blackberries. My nose can still smell the aroma of fresh blackberry pies, preserves, and cobbler on a warm summer evening.
What I had forgotten was the work it took to get those fresh berries to my mother. Usually it was the hottest time of the year when the blackberries would be ripe enough for harvest. Dressing for the event included jeans, boots, long sleeve shirts, and a straw hat. My dad and I would head towards the patch right after the morning chores were done carrying two five-gallon buckets, a small picking bucket, and a jug of water. The patch was loaded with beautiful red and black berries.
Our task was to only pick the ones that were quite black and had no rotten places on them. As I began filling my bucket, I remember that the ones along the edge were usually small but easy to pick. Looking deeper into the bush, I’d spot the biggest berries in the patch. You know, the ones that would fill my bucket quickly. Reaching in, without thinking or being careful, my hands would grab a berry … and then my arm would catch a thorn. Jerking my hand out only caused more thorns to dig into my skin. One discovery was that if I just kept my hand inside the bush I didn’t get stuck. But then I would miss out on the best part of the experience, eating the wonderful deserts. I’d pull my hand out slowly and place the big berries in the bucket. From that time on, I would be careful and not go near the thorns.
Temptations we encounter remind me of the big berries inside the bush. On the outside, things look sweet and we rationalize that we can take part and not get hurt. Even though we know that God is not a part of the situation, we venture in deeper and deeper. It is when we move into the middle to find what we think is the best looking fruit, that thorns engulf our lives.
For those of us who have experienced this, we know that no one comes away without great wounds. If you have experienced the thorns of life and walked away, you can then taste the sweet knowledge that the Lord was there to heal each pain. You can help others who may be thrashing in the midst of the thorns or those who already have thorn-ridden hands.
The blackberries are just at the beginning to ripen for harvest and it looks like it will be a good year. I will have to get stuck by a few thorns and once again learn my lesson to proceed slowly so I do not get caught in the thorns.
The lessons you learn today will help you resist the thorns that life has yet for you to discover.
