Ticks

 The Tick is a fictional character created by cartoonist Ben Edlund in 1986.  It was also made into a sitcom in 2001.  Both the cartoon caricature and sitcom were, to say the least, silly.  Ticks, however, are neither cute nor silly.  They carry disease, they feed off the blood of their hosts, they crawl and connect to the worst of places, and once lodged, they are hard to get rid of.

            I was helping a friend paint an out building, and it was surrounded by thick foliage.  He sent me around the back and I asked,  “are there bugs?”  He responded, “No,” of course there were bugs; it was outside.  But, they were not obvious.

            It wasn’t until that evening, while relaxing in my chair, that I noticed this little bug crawl up my shirt.  After flinching, slightly, I pinched the bug between my fingers and put it in a Kleenex next to the chair (I would throw it away later).  But the little bug wasn’t dead.  When it started crawling on my remote I realized it was a TICK!  Other than roaches there is no other insect that disgusts me more.  To think, it was crawling on me.  I promptly squished it again, in the Kleenex, and flushed it down the toilet.  I had triumphed.

            But where there is one, there are two.  Sure enough, I was sitting on the edge of my bed, getting ready for a comfortable nights sleep; when I reached down to itch my leg, sure enough, there was another parasite.   My muscles tensed as I quickly dug my finger nail into it torso, then reaching for a tissue, I wrapped it and flushed it down the toilet.  I then promptly examined everything to be sure the absence of additional monsters. I went to sleep, assured that my blood supply was safe.

            Parasites (ticks, fleas, tapeworms, etc.) are little things that suck the life out of us.  The Christian life is full of parasites.  They can be attitudes and behaviors that drain believers of their spiritual vitality.   When jealousy, bitterness, envoy, and strife take hold they cause conflict and ruin relationships.  Judgmentalism and unforgiveness drive people to isolation and resentment.    Our attitudes are always reflected in our behavior.  We stop speaking to friends, avoid contact with loved ones, withhold kindness from fellow believers, all because we have let little things attach themselves to our lives, let them fester, and in the end kill our joy.

            Real ticks inject numbing venom as they burrow into the skin.  This way the host is unaware of their existence.  The ‘ticks’ of our soul do the same thing, as we justify them with rational arguments meant to ‘prove’ our positions.  But unless we get rid of them, the host is open to a variety of illnesses and even death.   Eph. 4:31,32 “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.  Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” 

            Christ is our example and love is our goal.  I think it is a good habit to constantly examine our souls for parasites that will drain the spiritual vitality that is ours in Christ.  I’m just saying…