I’ve been thinking about thorns
lately. They generally have a negative
reputation (think Paul’s infamous thorn in the
flesh in 2 Corinthians 12). I used to work at a flower shop and would
often come home with nicks and cuts from all the roses I’d be handling…thorns
hurt! So what is their purpose? One source I found says, “You may think of those sharp thorns on your favorite climbing plant as
nothing more than a nuisance, but they function as hooks for climbing up
fences, arbors, trellises and walls. If you choose a plant known to be a
vigorous dense grower, make sure to provide it with a strong, sturdy support.” I’m obviously taking this out of context, but
I would have to consider myself a ‘dense grower.’ Sometime it just takes me a really long time
to get it. But the thorns God has allowed in my life cause me to 'hook' better to Him (my strong, sturdy support). It doesn't mean I get why He's given them, or that I haven't cried out to Him in confusion in the process. And it is a process.
Jesus went through His own process when He was here on earth. Hebrews 5 says that Jesus “offered prayers and pleadings, with a loud cry and tears, to the one who could rescue him from death. And God heard his prayers because of his deep reverence for God. Even though Jesus was God's Son, he learned obedience from the things He suffered." Jesus was obedient in His suffering. Am I obedient
to trust God with my thorn? George Matheson, a blind preacher from Scotland, said:
“My God, I have never thanked Thee for my thorn. I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but not once for my thorn. I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross; but I have never thought of my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the glory of my cross; teach me the value of my thorn."
"You are good, and what you do is good." Psalm 119:68
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