Hammer on Anvil '

I like to keep a neat yard. I really do. Nothing makes me happier than driving passed my own house and seeing the grass short, and the fence-line and sidewalk nicely trimmed. It brings me such a feeling of satisfaction.

Ask my wife. After mowing on Sunday, I kept saying, "Wow, would you just look at that yard." She would reply, "Yes, Brandon, it looks wonderful." Every time...only getting a little annoyed the more I said it. Or a lot annoyed. But who can be sure?

There are times, though, when I can't mow as often as I would like. Last year, our son Aaron was born. The days leading up to his birth had been very busy and our grass was growing taller. Then when we got home, we just wanted to rest as much as we could. So our grass got a little out of hand.

When the grass gets really tall, it takes longer to mow it. I have to put the mower on a lower setting so it doesn't go as fast. It takes longer to dry, so even if I'm mowing late in the afternoon, sometimes I have to stop and clean out the mower because the wet grass keeps clogging it up.

It is a much more tedious operation when I don't take care of my lawn every week as I should (especially during the spring).

The same is true about our walks with Christ.

We want to nurture and take care of our walk. We want to make sure we are following in His footsteps. But it has been so long since we have regularly done it. The grass is so tall. We know that if we start, it's going to be slow going.

We aren't going to be able to jump right in and pray an hour like we used to, or read several chapters in our Bibles. We know if we show up to Bible study this week, people are going to ask us tons of questions about our whereabouts.

If we go volunteer at a church activity or in the community, it's going to be difficult getting started. There will be people we don't know, a new environment to get used to, or we can't sit at home and watch the summer reruns of our favorite shows.

If we get serious about our walk again, we are going to face fears we haven't been dealing with or sins that we have allowed to creep into our lives.

When it has been a while, our walk with God can seem a bit intimidating.

But you know what? After taking those first steps and completing whatever task it is I set out to do (Bible reading, volunteering, or fellowship with Christians) I usually feel really accomplished. I ask myself, "why haven't I been doing this all along?"

There is something about following the will of God that brings satisfaction like nothing else can. When we pursue the purposes that God has given us, we feel like we are really living.

Sure, it may be slow going at times. There may even be tune ups we have to do along the way. I recently replaced the blades on my lawn mower. I cut up my hands a little and it took way longer than it should have, but the blades were terrible. But once I started mowing with the new ones, mowing went even more smooth.

So even when we tend to our hearts and follow after God, there may be little changes we have to keep making. But it's less frustrating when the other areas of our walk are in order. It is way less intimidating.

If you haven't been tending to the work that God has given you, it can seem like a bit much when getting back into it; but I strongly encourage you to jump in and do it! There is no living like living for Christ. Take things slow. If you have to get off the mower and make some adjustments along the way, take your time and do them. Don't give up. Keep truckin, or mowin, along.