Mental Wanderings

Do you ever let you mind wander when you are doing chores? I do. My wanders a lot during some tasks. Today, I was pruning blackberry bushes early this afternoon. As I snipped off dead branches and pulled up weeds, some things occurred to me.

The first thing that occurred to me is that we also go through pruning. The dead branches on a blackberry bush only make it harder to harvest the fruit. If you aren't careful, that deadness can spread. Jesus said, "I am the vine, and My Father is the vineyard keeper. Every branch in Me that does not produce fruit He removes, and He prunes every branch that produces fruit so that it will produce more fruit" (John 15:1-2, HCSB). When we get the dead branches out of our lives, we, most likely, will see an increase in fruitfulness. Dead branches are the people, activities, and private sins we allow to draw us away from God.

Another thing that occurred to me is that the presence of sin in the world means that we will have to work hard and endure pain, if we are to enjoy the fruit of a well lived life. I love blackberries. I have worked to maintain the wild bushes in my yard. I enjoy being able to go out, right behind my house and harvest blackberries in the summer. But I seriously doubt that many have ever harvested a large amount of blackberries without also having to doctor cuts and pick thorns out of their skin. The blackberry, in all its yummy goodness, does not come without some discomfort (even tame blackberries purchased in a store put a thorn in your wallet).

It also occurred to me that crabgrass is a violent, invasive killer.  Its roots grow deep and wide, and entangle themselves in the root systems of more useful plants. As I worked to uproot the crabgrass growing around my blackberry bushes, I couldn't keep from thinking about Jesus' parable about the wheat and the tares. The tares were weeds that an enemy had sown. Jesus warned against pulling them up, for fear it would damage the wheat. They were allowed to grow together until the harvest, and then the tares were gathered into bundles and burned. Some of my careless weeding cost me precious blackberry plants, so I adjusted my strategy. The plants that survive will be stronger in the long run, since they aren't competing with the crabgrass any more. It reminded me that discipline must be practiced wisely, carefully, and with a gentle hand.

What about you, where do your mental wanders take you? What truths are you confronted with? What wisdom is passed on? Let me know about it.