A Strawberry Patch Lesson

I had the opportunity to go strawberry picking today with the Dokters. This is the first time I've been strawberry picking since maybe middle school. I remembered almost nothing about what strawberry fields look like, how strawberries grow, or what the best strawberries look like. It took me a few minutes to figure out how to find the best strawberries and how to pick them without smooshing them. (Spell-check doesn't think smooshing is a word. It's wrong, clearly.)

Something I noticed is that the strawberries are on the ground most of the time. I had completely forgotten that this is the case. My first thought was, "How do they stay fresh and not start rotting if they're on the ground all the time?" I know how easily strawberries can start to get mushy in the fridge, so it seemed odd that they could be on the moist ground and not go bad.

The answer came easily. It's because they're attached to the plant. Strawberries that come off of the plant don't stay fresh on the ground. They deteriorate quickly. But so long as they are attached to the stem (and haven't been stepped on or eaten by bugs), they continue to grow and ripen.

What a natural metaphor to the Christian life. We are in the world, a place that is dirty with sin and has the potential to destroy us. But so long as we stay attached to Christ, abiding in Him, we can continue to grow in Him and live the way He commands.

How do we stay connected? Like any relationship, we need good communication and to spend time with Him (prayer and soaking in Scripture). He is our lifeline. If our tether with Him is broken, we will quickly deteriorate morally.

How's your tether? When is the last time you took in the nutrients of God's Word and spent time talking with Him? Is how much you're pouring into your relationship with God enough to offset the dirt of the world?