A well maintained park is something to enjoy. I picture in my mine a lawn with fully seeded and nicely cut grass, large shade trees, beautiful flowers, and aesthetically pleasing landscape; maybe a pond, or creek, or fountain near by. There is a lot of work that goes into keeping that piece of ground looking nice. If you don’t keep it up, it will look like my orchard a few days ago.
It had been a few weeks since I sat in my garden/orchard. A few very busy weeks had gone by and I never found the time to go to my quiet place of prayer around some young fruit trees. I had not watered them lately and they were in sad shape. The grass was knee high and weeds and wild, thorned blackberries covered the ground. Deer jumped over the electric fence and ate the leaves off my plum tree. It didn’t take it long to look like a jungle. It reminds me of this proverb.
Proverbs 24:30-34 KJV
30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.
I would not call myself slothful, and I certainly hope I am not void of understanding. I found myself mowing three other very overgrown lawns the weeks previous to this, but I didn’t have time to mow this piece. Nonetheless, it was still in neglect (and still is for that matter). It doesn’t take long, just a little sleep. A little neglect will take over if you let it. Pretty soon that field will be all grown over with thorns.
This field in Proverbs has been left to this man, probably, for generations. It was his inheritance and livelihood. This is where he might graze his sheep. There is a vineyard where he would preserve the sweet fruit of the grape. This is not just a place of leisure, but an important piece of ground for his livelihood and that of his family. If he is slumbering and failing to keep this piece of ground what other areas might he be neglecting?
I am not worried about keeping my orchard like a well kept park. While, that would be nice, I am more concerned about other aspects of my life that I have let go and begun to neglect. This orchard is a special place of prayer to me, and it had suffered some neglect. If it were as easy to see the spiritual results of our neglect as it is to see the physical results of neglecting to mow, what areas of our life would we see as over grown?
Today, it is easy for us to spend way too much time on things that do not matter: Facebook, TV, Instagram, worldly books, our phones, video game and the like are all distractions from the things we should not be neglecting. Like a garden given to neglect, our relationships with those who matter to us will not yield the fruit that we desire, and if it does we will have to cross the thorns and nettles to get to the fruit. Our relationship with God must also be maintained regularly. I hope you will take a moment to see what areas you are neglecting and the end result that will follow if that neglect should continue. We cannot afford to be asleep at the wheel when it comes to our responsibility and obligations both physically and spiritually.
S. T. I Thessalonians 5:24 "Faithful is he..."
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