Why Do I Throw Rocks?

Have you ever made a dumb choice that brought on consequences you regretted?

Today I had the privilege of visiting my 17-year-old friend who is in a youth detention center. Something he said today rocked my world.

Life is like a pond. The water is smooth, glassy, and still. Then out of nowhere or after much thought, we throw a rock into the center of the silky reservoir of water. Waves splash, ripples bellow across the water, and the peaceful calm is gone. After patiently waiting for the consequences to alter the moment, the motion subsides and peace returns.

Sometimes we make choices, succumb to temptations, or do foolish things that crash the peaceful calm of our lives. Like a rock pelting the gentle water, a simple word spoken wounds a relationship. A thoughtless action alters our future, or an addictive temptation ripples through our mind and seizes our life.  It’s the rock that destroys the life we were intended to live.

So why do we throw the rock? What causes us to say the hateful word, do the unimaginable, or remain trapped in a bed of lies? Why do we destroy the peace that we love?

Is it retaliation?

Is it a need for control?

Is it to satisfy a need that only Christ can fill?

Is it for approval or popularity?

Hearing his simple words brought me to my knees:

God, I’m so sorry for all the rocks I’ve thrown. You have the perfect plan for my life and I repeatedly chunk rocks into the center of your perfect will causing pain, hard times, and unnecessary consequences. Forgive me.

When I pick up my rocks, in what I say, or do, please gently take my hand and remove the stone. Let me build an altar at your feet with the rocks that could destroy my life. Turn those ugly habits, temptations, and nasty stones into beautiful flowers that line the edge of my life, reflecting your forgiveness and strength.