Stuck In The Muck

My dad and I used to go trout fishing whenever he and my mom would come up to visit my wife and me. There's a river a few miles north of our house that has some good, deep holes in it. And clear, cool water with a gravel bottom are prime ingredients for a good trout stream.

A winding trout stream has a few other not so pleasant characteristics as well. The shallow spots near the shoreline, especially on the "inside" of a bend in the river, are breading grounds for our state bird - the mosquito!

These "slow" portions of the river also contain a lot of settled dirt that has flowed downstream and collected there. This "muck" can be a trap when you are trying to get into or out of the river. One soon learns to avoid these areas. They can easily trap you there and could even kill you if you're not careful.

When you step in that muck your waders sink in deep. Every movement makes them sink deeper. I have had my foot sink so deep that my foot actually comes out of the wader leaving it stuck there. River muck is a good thing to avoid if at all possible.

The world we live in is a lot like that muck. It can suck us in and kill us too if we're not careful. This world is a dangerous place to begin with. Then the traps and snares that quietly hide in those unsuspecting places reach up and grab us when we least expect it.

Drugs, alcohol, gambling, sexual temptations, gluttony, laziness, apathy, greed . . . so many traps. So how do we avoid all of the muck as we walk down the river that is our lives? Stay away fro it!

We I am fishing and wade in a river, I have learned to watch out for such areas. I don't even go there! And so should it be with our lives. Stay out of the casinos, empty the liquor bottles, flush the drugs. Rid your life and your self from anything muck-like.

"Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." - Galatians 5:19-21

Jesus is that drink of "living water" that washes us clean from all the muck that clings to us . . . that pulls us under. If you find yourself in the muck of this world, reach out to Jesus. Grab His hand. He can pull you out of anything. But you must be willing. And our flesh is SO weak. Reach out to Him today.

Something In The Water - Carrie Underwood