Life in the blackberry vines
In all honesty, I suppose we all do. And small surprise! This evil and rebellious world attempts to draw us in and hold us captive with its octopus-like tentacles. This poor little Volkswagen Scirocco is an excellent illustration from nature. Swallowed by blackberry vines, it is no longer capable of fulfilling the purpose for which the manufacturers created it.
The world’s tentacles
The Scirocco is helpless. But what about us? How do we respond when the cares, concerns, and temptations of the world stretch out their tentacles intending to bind us, and blind us with a distorted view of reality? Do we wave a white flag of surrender? Do we give in, or give up? Or do we proclaim who we are in Christ and affirm that, in Christ, we are more than conquerors? Do we call upon the Holy Spirit to give us the power to break free from whatever ensnares us?
Our proclamation of God’s promise
Our desperate need is to proclaim from the highest rooftops (or, at least from our front door) what Scripture affirms as reality: “I am a child of the most high God. I’ve been Redeemed, Ransomed, Reborn, and declared Righteous in His eyes. With Christ as my victorious Savior, I CAN break free from the world’s hold on me and the issues from my past.”
2 Timothy 2:26 – “and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, hav-ing been held captive by him to do his will.”
May God enable us to come to our senses, recognize the snares of the devil, and refuse to be held captive by him.
The car’s fate
The last time I saw this pathetic car, only a headlight remained visible. So what about me? Am I letting the light of Jesus shine in my life? May we all stand firm in the faith, grounded in His word during these precarious times.
It’s your turn now. If you’re comfortable sharing, I’d like to hear about your experiences and how the Lord brought you through hardships into freedom.
Love the car! Great post. Thanks for sharing.
This makes me wonder who owns the car? Why did they leave it there, deserted to en engulfed by blackberry vines? How is it that the blackberry vines, which are weak in comparison to the strength of an ordinary car, be allowed to completely surround it? Sometimes life is like that. You get stuck in a situation. Satan surrounds you and keeps you immobile, frozen by discouragement or fear. This is when you need a friend to come with a machete and hack the weeds away, to set it free. It’s like that in life too, right? We need friends to come alongside us and pray against the spiritual forces that continue to snare and immobilize us. Then we can be free to walk in the light (one headlight is enough to start) and be the beam for others to see their way out of the snare, and into the arms of Jesus.
You made some good points there. I did a search on the topic and found most folks will agree with your blog. Lily Delmar Cailly