Prodigal Magazine

Picture this: you’re walking along a beach at sunset, enjoying the view, the weather, and all of God’s creation. The waves washing up on the beach create a soft symphony that soothes away the cares of the world. The sunlight reflecting off the water offers a glimpse of how the streets of gold might look. Along the shore, scattered in no apparent design, are hundreds of pieces of driftwood. They seem to have been placed there by God Himself to add to the beauty of the scenery. At this moment, all is well with your soul.

 Later, as you relax by a warm fire, you notice that you’re running low on firewood, and immediately, the driftwood comes to mind. It is then that you realize what God said in Hebrews 2:1. “We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so we do not drift away.”

 Driftwood provides us with a good illustration of what happens to a Christian who drifts away.

 The process begins when a branch breaks its connection to the vine. Jesus said “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5).” Through lack of intimate time with God and/or the local church family, the branch begins to break away and eventually falls to the ground. It is no longer a part of the vine, and isn’t even attached to the other branches. Instead, it lays helpless on the ground with the other branches that have also fallen away.

 Sooner or later, it gets washed away from even these, and ends up floating helplessly in the water, becoming rotten and bloated by the influence of its new surroundings. It has, by now, drifted far away from familiar ground and has lost its ability to resist temptation-it has become water-logged.

In due time, though, it will wash up on a foreign shore where it will dry out, leaving only a shell of what it once was. Passers-by may notice how well it fits into its new environment, but really, it has no value. Its beauty is only skin deep. “Such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned (John 15:6).”

 The moral of the story…STAY CONNECTED!

 Saemus Sutton is the author of Leaders Make Leaders, featuring the Wash, Rinse, Repeat mentoring model. You can view the model and download the book FREE at leadersmakeleaders.com