Saturday, November 10, 2018

Picking Rocks

Being new to Sherman County, I am continually growing in my understanding of the life of its wheat growers and their challenges in farming where the soil is often not deep, the rain to water the crops is frequently sparse, and the danger of fire is always present. This kind of life is one of details, determination, diligence and hope.

Once the harvest is over the break is very brief because the time to seed is not far behind. In between the two there is much to do, and one of those tasks as I have come to learn is rock picking. For many reasons this is not a top 10 thing to do, but it has to be done in order to respond to the annual wonder of rocks rising to the surface. If you didn’t know better, you might think that they were grown along with the wheat. Oh, if they could only be ignored, but doing so leads to severe consequences.

Spiritually speaking our lives are a process not only of growing but also tending to rocks. As issues in our lives are discovered we are wise to deal with them so that they don’t hinder our walk. In Hebrews 12:1-2 we read “…let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith….”

Growth requires more than just going through the motions. We need to be consistent in getting rid of the rocks of sin in our lives so that they don’t become obstacles to growth, hindrances to the work in which we are engaged, and distract us from following after Christ who is our head and our hope.

(Posted in Sherman County eNews November 9, 2018)