Opportunity Knocks
As Linda is on leave over the Christmas Season, here is one of her top rating posts for you to enjoy.
Let’s just say we used to have 4 chooks
Reference: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. (Luke 8:5 NIV)
Explore: We have chooks at our place. We have just a couple and they live in a coop in our garden.
We give them special pellets to help them produce eggs and it’s been a great way of teaching our boys how to care for others. It is their job to make sure there is food and water for the birds each day.
This may not sound like a really big job, but our chooks are not the only animals living around our house. We have magpies and crows who will swoop down on any pellets that are dropped.
More concerning, however, is the fox that lurks down the back of our block. Let’s just say we used to have 4 chooks, however, we allowed one to get too close to the back of the block.
It didn’t take long. Foxes are always waiting for opportunity to come along.
Application: We need to be careful with the things dear to us, as they can easily be taken away if we are not careful.
This is what I thought of, too, when reading the Parable of the Sower. When he dropped the seed on the path the birds took it away. When he dropped it in the bad soil, the rocks and weeds took away its opportunity to grow and develop.
But when the farmer was careful in his placement, the seed grew, flourished and gave great fruit.
We all want to be seed that gives great fruit, but then we need to be more conscious of what we do. Unfortunately, when we’re careless and haphazard we can easily be led astray.
If we truly value our faith, we need to be careful how we place it in our lives. Do you put your faith in someone else’s hands?
Do you just spread your faith out on Sundays? Do you just care for it when you’re at church?
Our relationship with God is the most precious thing we have. Let’s care for it with dedication and purpose.
Prayer: Lord, forgive me when I’m lazy with my faith. May I take every opportunity to build and develop my faith towards bearing fruit for You. Amen.
How well are you caring for your faith?
This article was written by Linda Bailey
Linda started theological studies in 1999 in Australia. After working for ten years in various church ministries, she now works as the breakfast producer at 89.9 LightFM - the Christian radio station in Melbourne, Australia. She writes blogs every day about passages she is currently reading in the Bible. Follow her on Google Plus +Linda Bailey or Facebook by clicking the like button on the right of this page.