Beware of Hitchhikers! – Part Two

Yesterday, I was naked before You, Lord.  Naked and Unashamed.

Not because I was righteous.  I was struggling in the quicksand of my latest failures.  But my failures are never any match for Your Unfailing Love!

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness.”  (Lamentations 3:22-23)

I was struggling against my “old woman.”  The one I thought was dead and buried.  But there “she” was again, putting her lusts first and her Lord second.

I wept and prayed in the predawn hours.  I crawled onto our guest bed and snuggled into a fetal position.  Wanting You, Abba, to answer my “Why?”  That’s when You shifted my focus.  And I saw…

… two Hitchhikers.

Not humans… but plants.  On the bedspread, just inches away from my eyes. Those fuzzy little seed pods that cling to our clothing whenever we walk through weeds.

By design, they cling to whatever “carrier” will transport them.  Doing what they’re made to do.  So they can sprout more weeds.

There they were.  In our guest bedroom.  Positioned where I could not possibly have seen them.  Apart from You, Lord… directing my steps and opening my eyes so I would see them.

In the echo of my “Why.”  Where You whispered very personal and penetrating questions. Inviting me into a new season of Discovery.

“What “weeds” have you walked through lately, Daughter?  What “hitchhikers” have you picked up?  What new “crops” of weeds are sprouting around you because you failed to remove the “seeds” you were (are) carrying?”

Weed patches become huge when left unattended.  But seed pods — those little hitchhikers — are tiny.  It takes almost nothing to pick them off and throw them away.

Could the same be true of my weed seeds, Lord?  The spiritual hitchhikers I am allowing a free ride?  Taking them with me wherever I go — letting them sprout and grow — so they can keep entangling me with new patches of the Same Old “Stuff?”

SOS, indeed!

Those hitchhikers must go, Lord.  Clearly, I am not able…. but You are.  Yet, I must be willing.  Therein lies the rub.  Maybe I should rewrite Mark 9:24?

“I am willing; help me overcome my unwillingness!”

Have mercy on me… Lord, my Hope!

“For this reason He had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God… Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted.”  (Hebrews 2:17-18)

“… those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength…”  (Isaiah 40:31)

How wonderful a “magic pill” would be!  Or a foolproof, three-step process.  But then, I wouldn’t need You… would I, Lord?

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”  (Proverbs 3:5-6)

Leaning in,

Abba’s Girl

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *