Mark 4:18-19 -- On Thorns

"And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word,
And the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh unfruitful."
Mark 4:18-19


This is part of the explanation that Christ gave his disciples about the parable of the sower. I think it is a good warning to us about the things that can pull us away from God. "The cares of the world" can cover so many things I think, and perhaps part of faith in the gospel is learning to trust God about handling the things that we can't control, and just doing the best we can with the rest.

Not saying it is easy, but some things can help, like making sure our focus is on God, and that we are talking through things with him and putting him first. Trials and challenges and "cares" will come, but if we include God in our lives, he can help us handle them, and then we can stop those things from shaking the bond that we have with God. The thorns in life are there to help us learn and grow and become stronger and more compassionate. They are there to show us beauty in opposition to pain, as with a rose. They are never meant to break us or drive us away from the truth.

Today, let's put God first, and help God's word grow in our lives rather than letting the thorns take over and choke it out, and thereby losing the most precious and beautiful thing that we have.