Beauty or Hurt?

FAITH:

Luke 8:14
The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.

My life has not been a bed of roses.

What an odd statement. It is supposed to mean that I haven't lived a life without snags and hurt. However, think of an actual bed of roses. Doesn't it have both thorns and flowers?

Let me say, if I was reading this devotion and I saw it was going to be about roses, I might be tempted to click "delete" while rolling my eyes and thinking the last thing the world needs is another cutesy Christian analogy. But stick with me here. There is something significant to be discovered about roses and thorns.

My aunt has grown roses for years. When I was in middle school and my family was falling apart, I went to live with my aunt for almost a year. I remember her telling me not to run through her rose garden. After all, she had what seemed like hundreds of other acres that unfolded in wide open fields. I could run there.

But I didn't want to.

I only wanted to run through the rose garden. I wanted to spread my arms wide open and run between the rows brushing my fingertips across all the velvety blooms. I wanted some of the blooms to burst and shower petals all around. Then I could gather the petals and spread them along my path.

As if I could carve a new place in this world lined with beauty and void of adult words like divorce, rejection, and hate ... I wanted my world to be soft, pink, and lovely. So, I took a running start with my arms outstretched only to be shocked with searing pain within the first few steps.

Thorns. Big, mean, vicious thorns. Thorns that ripped my flesh and opened up the flood of tears I'd been so determined to hold back. Suddenly, I hated that bush. I wanted to chop it down and beat it into the ground. But I couldn't do it. I couldn't bring myself to destroy something that produced such beauty.

I stood back from the source of my pain and wondered should I call it a bush of thorns or a bush of flowers. Really, it could go either way.

Suddenly I wasn't just staring at a bush. I was staring at my life. My life. Such a bed of roses. Would I see the hurt or would I see the beauty?

Luke 8:14 says, "The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature." The seed being referred to here is the Word of God. Isn't it interesting that people who are choked by life's circumstances and never mature are referred to as having thorns in the soil of their soul? Yes, life sometimes hands us thorns but we have the choice to park our mind on the thorn or on the beauty it can eventually produce in us if only we'll cling tightly to God's Word. For however a person thinks is how they will eventually become.

If we dwell on and think about the negative in life, we will become negative and God's Word will have a hard time taking root in our souls. If, however, we acknowledge the negative but choose instead to look for the good that can come from it, God's Word will take root in our souls and produce a lush crop of beauty.

It all comes down to choice. That day in my aunt's garden, I chose to be aware of the thorns but park my mind on the petals.

And I guess you could say, I've been making that choice every day since. by Lysa TerKeurst

FRIENDS:
Dear Lord, it can be really hard to focus on the petals rather than the thorns of life. Really hard. Will you help me? I want the soil of my soul to be healthy and ready to receive Your Word. I want to produce beauty in my life despite the thorns by which I've been so hurt. Will You show me how? In Jesus' Name, Amen.

DAILY BIBLE CHALLENGE
10. JOHN 3:22-36; JAMES 5:1-6; ECCLES. 7:15-29; JEREMIAH 23-25
11. JOHN 4:1-14; JAMES 5:7-12; ECCLES. 8; JEREMIAH 26-29
12. JOHN 4:15-26; JAMES 5:13-20; ECCLES 9; JEREMIAH 30-31


~JEREMIAH`

No church would hire Jeremiah. He wouldn't make it past the first interview. Better still, he wouldn't even make it to the interview.

He had little stomach for organized religion. One can hardly blame him. What he saw would nauseate the worst of us.

He saw raging immorality. He saw blatant idolatry. He saw unbridled hypocrisy. He saw priests who sold out to the highest bidder. He saw kings who lived out his worst nightmare.

Were his head a Niagara, it wouldn't generate enough tears for him to weep. Like Job, he cursed the day he was born, and again, you can hardly blame him. It was a rotten day in which to live.

He could see the writing on the Babylonian wall, but you'd think he was the only one who knew how to read.

In the end, the walls fell just like he said. The Temple was raided, just like he prophesied. And the people were bound like slaves and led into Babylon.

To his credit, he never said, "I told you so."

He remained behind and walked among the ruins and did what he did most of his life. He wept.

FOOD:

Trail Mix Popcorn
Makes about 10 cups

1 bag (2.9 oz.) microwave popcorn, cooked according to package directions
1 cup raisins
½ cup dried apricots, chopped
½ cup dried cranberries &/or cherries
1 cup sugar
½ cup light corn syrup
2 Tbsp. butter or butter soft spread
1 tsp. baking soda
¼ cup finely chopped pecans, walnuts &/or peanuts
¼ cup raw sunflower seeds
1 tsp ground cinnamon

In large bowl sprayed with nonstick cooking spray, combine popcorn with
all dried fruits, and set aside.

In medium saucepan over low heat, combine sugar with corn syrup, and once melted, stir in butter, baking soda, all nuts, cinnamon, and sunflower
seeds and stir until well combined.
Carefully drizzle mixture over popcorn and fruit, stirring constantly,
until popcorn and fruit are coated. Cool completely before serving.

FUN:

Here are some fun alternatives to liven up your out-of-the-office e-mails.

1. Thank you for your e-mail. Your credit card has been charged $5.99 for the first ten words and $1.99 for each additional word in your message.

2. Thank you for your message, which has been added to a queuing system. You are currently in 352nd place, and can expect to receive a reply in approximately 19 weeks.

3. Due to a transporter malfunction, I am now in the 24th century, and I don't know when I'll be back. But hey, leave a message. Someone might get to it.

4. In case of a business emergency, I may be reached 24 hours a day at (insert boss's cell phone number here).

5. The e-mail server is unable to deliver this message. Please restart your computer and try sending again.

6. Please reply to this e-mail so I will know that you got this message.