One of my high school teachers asked me to pray with him before the start of the school year. I was shocked when he prayed that a certain boy wouldn’t enroll. Apparently the teacher knew something that I didn’t know. The boy did enroll and later that year, he led three of my classmates into a wild weekend. One of those was a girl I had met at Summer camp where I became a follower of Christ. Months later, this girl was pregnant and had to drop out of school. Another of my classmates that got wrapped up in this mess was one of those kids who seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. I remember tempting him to do something stupid one time and he didn’t do it. That always impressed me. But this time he had met some friends who dragged him down hard.
Some weeks ago, Pastor Joe preached on Hebrews 12 where a person is characterized as a poisoned plant that grows up and causes others to sin.
Guard against turning back from the grace of God. Let no one become like a bitter plant that grows up and causes many troubles with its poison. Hebrews 12:15 Good News Translation.
This got me thinking about times when I may have been that bitter plant.
It got me thinking about people who have been bitter plants for me.
It got me thinking about the spiritual battle that is raging all around us. My teacher saw something or sensed something that I didn’t. He prayed that a bitter plant wouldn’t get planted in our school. As it turns out, he was right. May God give us the spiritual discernment to see below the surface where the root of this bitter plant grows whether that is in our own life or in the life of someone with whom we are friendly. And may that discernment turn us toward prayer.
