Trim Your Life

The other day I was home doing some yard work that is not very fun, I was trimming trees. Trees have this nasty habit of growing. In the process of this growing they get new branches and these new branches block the sun, which is a good thing...called shade. It's also a not so good thing for the grass. Too much shade means no grass. So every few years I have to prune the trees so the grass can grow.

It is also a good thing for the tree. If the branches get too big they can break. A good example of this is the tree in my neighbor's yard. It has never been pruned. Almost every time a storm comes, that tree looses a few branches. Once in a while those branches tear down the power lines. this is a bad thing.

Back to the story. So, I'm out in the yard working way too hard with a chain saw just so the grass grows better and faster and thicker, which means, I will just have to mow it more often. Some times I wonder why I do the things I do. My arms hurt, my back hurts, and my mouth hurts from all the bad words I'm saying to the chain saw every time the chain comes off. (yes I often talk to inanimate objects, but my therapist says it's OK as long as they don't talk back).

After all the branches are stacked by the street and I'm finally relaxing, it occurs to me that this pruning thing is mentioned in the bible. (Check out Luke 13:6-9) What Jesus is trying to get across is that every now and then we need to prune off the excess in our lives so we are free to grow. The pruning of our lives is not fun work, just like the tree trimming, but it is necessary. For if we do not get rid of the excess in our lives we can become like the tree in my neighbor's yard: Over grown and falling down even to the point of cutting off the power source.

Don't let it come to that. Take an honest look at your life and get rid of some stuff. Maybe you have too much stuff-give some away. Maybe you have a few friends that are not so good for you-find others. Maybe you spend too much time in front of the computer or TV-go out side and trim some trees. Maybe you are too busy to pray, or even think of God- MAKE TIME. Just like the sun, God's love always shines, but if I don't trim the trees the grass never feels the heat. So, trim your life and feel the heat of God 's love!