The Art of Thriving – Fruitless Distractions
A person without self-control is like a city with broken-down walls. Proverbs 25:28 (NLT)
About a year ago, I noticed that one of my house plants was not growing as it should. The growth seemed to be stunted, and I couldn’t figure out why that was. It continued to produce new leaves, but at a slow pace. After a while, I noticed that there were, what seemed to be, new shoots coming out. But as the new shoots grew, I realised they were invaders and were taking over the pot. Since they were still tiny, I couldn’t remove them and had to wait until they were a bit bigger. When I was finally able to remove them, I made sure all the invaders were removed from the soil and re-potted the plant. The plant quickly produced new and healthy leaves. I now have a “happy plant“ that is ready to be re-potted into a bigger pot so it can flourish and thrive even more.
We all have times when we feel as if we are not thriving spiritually. Could it be that certain thought patterns, behaviours or habits have crept into our hearts and minds that have caused us to drift away from Jesus, our true vine? I’m reminded of the verse in Song of Solomon 2:15, which says,
“Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that spoil the vineyards, for our vineyards are in blossom.”
Distractions and Self-Control
We all consciously or unconsciously allow “little foxes” into our lives that hinder our relationship with the Lord Jesus, preventing us from staying in the vine. These “little foxes” can be distractions that we allow into our lives. We live in a world where distractions seem to call out to us in every conceivable arena of life. And we humans have these natural “antennas” that easily tune in to their frequencies. Once we’re tuned in, we will justify their importance. We might think or say things like, “But I need these distractions after a long day at work. I need to relax after fighting with the kids, trying to get them to bed. I need to silence the voices in my mind that replay the frustrating events of the day.” We feel that we are entitled to these distractions, therefore we don’t need to exercise any form of self-control. But these distractions are the “little foxes” that will slowly choke our spiritual life and prevent us from thriving. Our branch that should be firmly attached to Jesus, our vine, will become battered and bruised, so that we are unable to receive the nourishment that we need through the reading of the Word and prayer. It will prevent us from being empowered by Holy Spirit to exercise an important fruit of the Spirit: self-control.
Whatever it takes, Lord, increase my resolve to pursue only what you call me to do, and deliver me from the fragmenting effect of fruitless distraction. Jon Bloom
Reflection
Are there things in your life that are distracting you from taking time to read the Word and to pray? Take time to think about how they are preventing you from thriving spiritually.
Prayer
Dear Lord Jesus, thank You that You are the true vine. Help me recognise the distractions that are preventing me from reading Your Word and praying as I should. Help me to be led by Your Holy Spirit so that I can exercise self-control when I find myself being distracted by things that choke my spiritual growth. In Jesus’ name, amen.
