Weeds that grow in our heart

Today was an interesting day. Quite a cliché thing to start off today's post with. Yet it was also fabulous!

I spent pretty much the whole day with one of my best friends. We went to the beach and wandered around enjoying  new spaces that have popped up due to the innovation that's happened since the earthquake.

I could've written my whole post today about how amazing my day was but something struck me. It was only until 10 minutes ago, 10.45pm, as I was sitting on the couch reflecting on the day did I know what I would write about.

Sadly today, despite the fact that my day was fabulous and that I am still on a buzz from it, my thought tonight is a little more heavy.

It is not often you get offered a jar on the street as you are out enjoying the 29° weather. But today I was. Metaphorically speaking.

A jar that was full of a muddled up the thorns and questions.
Let me explain a little more...

As I walked along the street today mind focused on trying to devour my quickly melting ice cream and having a light conversation with my mate I couldn't help notice a group of teenagers hanging around.

Two boys where 'play punching' and one guy probably about 20 was riding on his bike. Studying him, my heart broke. His eyes told me a story, and insight.

We carried on walking... Me giving my attention back to my friend.

This guy biked past us and stopped about 5m away. He asked Ben, the guy I was with something that probably for Ben he has never been asked in his life! I know I haven't! But living where I do I guess I was a little more prepared for something of the matter.

"Oi do you do weed?" Was the guys question.

Bens reply: "no"

"Oh so you're a good boy then"

And in that moment I was handed a jar. A jar full of muddled up thorns and weeds. Yet I knew at the bottom growing was a flower... Just waiting to be born.

As we walked off I leant closer to Ben and said, "We don't need weed! Cause we have Jesus"

I would like to have said that I said that to the guy on the bike and then shared the gospel with him. But I did not. And I asked myself later on why I had not. But I wonder what would have happened if I had said that to that guy on the bike? I wish I had tbh, I wish I had. Maybe it would have lead on to a conversation about God.

Put that a side though, tonight as I reflected I opened up my jar ...

The words "Oh so you're one of those good boys" got me thinking....

For teenagers, my generation, our generation (depending on your age) these days drugs and alcohol have become a norm. You see it plastered across the media.
Accordingly an escape from reality. But for how long? How long can we keep buying into the media, trusting them as they manipulate.

Is this how it should be... That 12 year olds in our country our dying from huffing butane?

Though today Ben and I were asked if we took weed, the guy was also asking to see if we wanted to buy some.  I may not have bought the weed he implied for us to buy but I do know I did buy a jar full or thorny, weedy thoughts.

I discovered that maybe I do take weed. Just not on the 'high' terms. But in this way;  I see so much hurt in this work daily, I take it in, it breaks my heart time and time again. Yet every time I say to my self, why? Why is society like this, why aren't we doing anything about it?

But maybe today was my flower. The right amount of sun (happiness) rain (pain) and on the home soil, for it to really hit me.

I realized that the answer was me.
Instead of doing something about this pain I see in the world I have let it itself become a weed, growing within me. I have left it every time to sit inside me. Yet I should be using it as fuel. Using it to burn a fire, a heart inside of me for God and using it to make a difference in what I want to see the world make a difference in. I always had a passion for the topic, so why don't I do something about it?

So this evening I was motivated, inspired to make a change. And it starts with one small step. Having faith in God. I guess its easier to say than do, but I now know that next time I'm given an opportunity like today, an opportunity to share the love of God that I know of, I'll take with all my might. Because when given a jar or thorns and weeds there is always a beautiful flower ready to be uncovered

So I ask, do we really have weeds growing in our hearts?

---p.s sorry if tonight's post is a little hard to follow