There is a sport that takes pumpkins—the Halloween kind—and sees just how far we can toss those round, orange fruits.
The competition is so fevered, some teams resort to building massive trebuchets to send their orange bombs as far into the field as possible.
Why trebuchets? Simply, there is a bucket or loop on one end to hold the little orange beastie, and the weight on the other end can be wound as tightly as desired to build up as much force as possible. Then, when the trebuchet’s giant arm swings around, launching the pumpkin forward, it flies through the air with the greatest of ease.
Now, some people might read this and think, “Oh, what a waste of a good pumpkin!”
True. However, pumpkins are grown in massive quantities, and if they are not used in a timely manner, they spoil and become a smelly nuisance. A rotten pumpkin is something no one wants around.
What are the rotten pumpkins we fail to load into our trebuchets as Christians? Ah, now we’re to the meat of our article. There are things we need to cast as far from us as possible, because they will pollute our walk with Jesus.
Let’s look at seven examples from the Word of God:
Example #1:
Psalm 37:8 tells us: “Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.”
Chunk that punkin!
Example #2:
Proverbs 14:29 reminds us: “Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.”
Chunk that punkin!
Example #3:
James 1:20 cautions us: “For the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”
Chunk that punkin!
Example #4:
Ecclesiastes 7:9 is our guide: “Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the bosom of fools.”
Chunk that punkin!
Example #5:
James 1:19 directs us: “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.”
Chunk that punkin!
Example #6:
Proverbs 15:1 is all about our tongue: “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”
Chunk that punkin!
Example #7:
Ephesians 4:31 lays it out for us boldly and without question: “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.”
Chunk that punkin!
What pumpkins does God wish us to load into our trebuchets? Our anger, of course. If we fail to get it as far from us as possible, our anger will rot within us, and we will become a sour stink in the nostrils of God.
When we’re chunkin’ punkins, we’re sending our anger as far from us as possible. Then we win, God wins, and our fellow man also wins.
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Code: FGO.I.30.14.vp
Originally Published on 12-01-2014 in Relationships