Monday’s Musings:
Grab Those Pruning Sheers
Matthew 5:27-30 “You have heard the commandment that says,
‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I
say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery
with her in his heart. So if your
eye—even your good eye—causes you to lust, gouge it out and throw it away. It
is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be
thrown into hell. And if your hand—even
your stronger hand—causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is
better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be
thrown into hell.
Recently someone suggested that each member of the Wood
Valley pool adopt one of the ivy covered trees and cut the vines off as they are
killing some of the trees. It brought to memory the first house Joe and I
purchased. Just before the hill leading
down to a little creek was a long row of honeysuckle and vine covered bushes. Not caring for vines, I worked for one whole
day cutting and pulling and cutting and pulling until I had cleared all of them
away. Underneath I found some very
scraggly red tipped photinias. Within a
year, freed of the strangling vines, they filled out and were big and healthy
and beautiful. Sometimes we have things
in our lives that hold us back; that keep us from reaching our full potential
as children of God. It takes some hard work but will we be better off when we
can cut that out of our lives. That’s
what Jesus is saying using this hyperbole.
He’s not talking about literally disfiguring ourselves. Instead he’s
saying get rid of whatever causes us to sin. Whether they are causing us to sin, or just
holding us back, we need to seriously ask if letting them invade our lives is
worth it.
Loving God, help us to identify the things in our lives that
hold us back. Help us to see what might be keeping us from being healthy and
successful. We ask in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Have a great week!
Paige
Paige
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