It Isn't What It Seems

Every so often something happens in my life that is just so bold and audacious that the only way to get it out of my system is to put words on a page to it. The other day, I was out trimming my petunias when a chipmunk literally ran alongside of my right foot and into my garden. Several years ago, I would have delighted and thought that was the cutest and coolest thing. Not any longer. Imagine right by my foot! The audacity!

Why the change of heart? My husband and I make an attempt, and I use that terminology loosely, to grow raspberries and strawberries each year. The first few years we were relatively successful but we haven’t had much luck more recently. Puzzled by this, one day I happen to look out my window and saw this chipmunk chomping on the lone strawberry that was on our plant. I don’t mean a little nibble; he had that thing in both paws and was gorging on it.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love God’s creatures but really one needs to draw a line. My preconceived thoughts about chipmunks immediately vaporized into reality. What I once thought as a cute and loveable creature of God quickly became my arch enemy. It gave new meaning to Jesus’ admonishment “to beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing”.

As I pondered my problem, I asked myself what things do we accept and put up with in our lives that we write off as cute and harmless and aren’t really what they seem at all. How about our possessions that we think we own but really own us as we struggle to pay for and maintain them. I thought about those friendships that drag us down spiritually but seem innocent enough. Then of course we have our technology, as we DVR our programs and google our research but inevitably find ourselves going past that benefit into mindless hours of worthless pursuits. Or how about the mountain of insecurity we accept as part of who we are, that keeps us from stepping out in the boldness and courage that God calls us to, but we mask as a sense of false humility. Have I gone too far? But I am speaking to myself.

I think all of us have these cute things in our lives that we don’t even recognize as having a destructive side to them. Maybe it is because we haven’t looked at them from a different perspective. Do you have some things in your life that when viewed through fresh eyes might fall into this category? I do and I am currently working on putting them into perspective. God’s desire is for us to live an abundant life. Could it be that these kinds of things that we accept as permissible are really the very things that are keeping us from experiencing the fullness that God wants for us? Why not ask God to show you?

So, what is the moral of this post? Beware of rodents in cute chipmunk attire!