Most Christians are familiar with the parable of the sower who walked down a path and some of his seeds fell and were immediately devoured by  birds or trampled under foot. Some seeds fell on rocky ground and when the seedlings sprouted, the sun withered them as they were unable to take root. Other seeds fell amongst thorn bushes and when they grew, they were choked by the thorns. Some seeds, however, fell on good soil and established deep roots and grew strong.



Like the seeds of the sower, at times I fell and was devoured by popular science and evolutionary claims that caused me to doubt. Satan argued his case and I bought it.



Other times I fell on rocky ground and although I claimed to be Christian, I swayed with the wind and withered when challenged by my peers. I feared being ridiculed and that outweighed my commitment to GOD. The pressures of society and popular opinion seemed more important than believing in Christ.



Most of the time and I even struggle with this now, is my attempt to grow strong in my belief while avoiding being choked by the thorns of earthly trappings. Material possessions, money, status and their allure are all the thorns I face everyday. I often catch myself looking at a nice car on the road and wishing I had one myself. My wife recently offered to buy me an expensive cell phone as my old one was broken and instead of refusing and fixing my old one, I accepted the gift. That money could have been to far better use. Choked by thorns once again and I ask for forgiveness from GOD for my weakness.



There are so many temptations in today's world that can easily lead us away from the path that GOD has carved out for us. I am committed to doing my best to reprogram myself in order to resist these shiny but unimportant distractions and plant my roots in good soil so that I may grow strong towards GOD's light.