Little Foxes and Small Chores
14/06/09 17:53
It wasn’t very long into my Christian walk when
I heard a sermon from the Scripture found in the Song
of Solomon; “Catch for us the foxes, the little
foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are
in bloom.” Song of Songs 2:15
The message was directed toward those little things that were in our lives that hindered the Spirit’s work and made the grace of God of no effect in our lives. These “flies in the ointment” hinder the sweet fragrance of our lives that ascend up to our Lord and God. They are those things that we desire to get out of our lives because they stop us from realizing God in our lives.
I can’t list anything specific because God deals with each of us on an individual basis –one’s man faith only lets him eat vegetables and another man’s faith allows him to eat anything. But, be assured of this one thing; these little foxes are there and they keep coming no matter how long you’ve been a Christian, or how spiritual you may be.
Jesus told us that it is God’s will that we bear fruit in our lives, much fruit! But this is one of the most neglected priorities within Christianity. We look at the monies we give to charities, the ministries that we are involved in, the songs we sing for Jesus and the sacrifices we give for the Church. But if we do all these things and have not love…
Let me see if I can point out one of those little foxes. I know one - impatience. Yes the impatience in my life is a little fox that hinders the Spirit and at times causes problems in my witness for Christ. In other words, if someone notices my impatience and knows that I am also a Christian, they may come to the conclusion that I’m a hypocrite or at least, not a very good Christian. So, it behooves us to capture all these little foxes and make sure that they don’t ruin what we have worked for.
This takes me to the commitment of completing all those small chores in our lives that will aid us in capturing those little critters. For the sake of brevity, let me make this little illustration: During the autumn months I have a lot of little chores that I have to do around the home in order to be prepared for the harshness of winter.
Some of these little jobs mean nothing more than covering something with a piece of plastic. It may seem insignificant in and of itself, but in regards to the whole, this little chore can mean warmth, comfortability and even our safety. One thing about small chores; I like to put them off! One time I put off closing off the crawl space vent and my water pipes froze! Ugh.
Again, how can I be specific in naming these small chores –we’re all different. But categorically, these chores are those things that we have considered mundane, drab and even dull. Maybe, you don’t think it is important to meet with Christ first thing in the morning, but that is a little chore that we can’t go without. (Please don’t think, I think, that my prayer time is a chore –I don’t. )
The point that I am trying to make here is this: Not only do we have to capture the little foxes that hinder us but we have to do the small things that aid us. What is it that God requires of us Church? “He has showed you, O, man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah6:8 To do this we not only have to disentangle ourselves from worldly passions but we must also make a conscious attempt to keep in step with the Spirit, no matter how small that step is.
Have a great week!
Pastor Jim
The message was directed toward those little things that were in our lives that hindered the Spirit’s work and made the grace of God of no effect in our lives. These “flies in the ointment” hinder the sweet fragrance of our lives that ascend up to our Lord and God. They are those things that we desire to get out of our lives because they stop us from realizing God in our lives.
I can’t list anything specific because God deals with each of us on an individual basis –one’s man faith only lets him eat vegetables and another man’s faith allows him to eat anything. But, be assured of this one thing; these little foxes are there and they keep coming no matter how long you’ve been a Christian, or how spiritual you may be.
Jesus told us that it is God’s will that we bear fruit in our lives, much fruit! But this is one of the most neglected priorities within Christianity. We look at the monies we give to charities, the ministries that we are involved in, the songs we sing for Jesus and the sacrifices we give for the Church. But if we do all these things and have not love…
Let me see if I can point out one of those little foxes. I know one - impatience. Yes the impatience in my life is a little fox that hinders the Spirit and at times causes problems in my witness for Christ. In other words, if someone notices my impatience and knows that I am also a Christian, they may come to the conclusion that I’m a hypocrite or at least, not a very good Christian. So, it behooves us to capture all these little foxes and make sure that they don’t ruin what we have worked for.
This takes me to the commitment of completing all those small chores in our lives that will aid us in capturing those little critters. For the sake of brevity, let me make this little illustration: During the autumn months I have a lot of little chores that I have to do around the home in order to be prepared for the harshness of winter.
Some of these little jobs mean nothing more than covering something with a piece of plastic. It may seem insignificant in and of itself, but in regards to the whole, this little chore can mean warmth, comfortability and even our safety. One thing about small chores; I like to put them off! One time I put off closing off the crawl space vent and my water pipes froze! Ugh.
Again, how can I be specific in naming these small chores –we’re all different. But categorically, these chores are those things that we have considered mundane, drab and even dull. Maybe, you don’t think it is important to meet with Christ first thing in the morning, but that is a little chore that we can’t go without. (Please don’t think, I think, that my prayer time is a chore –I don’t. )
The point that I am trying to make here is this: Not only do we have to capture the little foxes that hinder us but we have to do the small things that aid us. What is it that God requires of us Church? “He has showed you, O, man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah6:8 To do this we not only have to disentangle ourselves from worldly passions but we must also make a conscious attempt to keep in step with the Spirit, no matter how small that step is.
Have a great week!
Pastor Jim
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