Cenchrus spinifex. That's it's official name. We call them sand burrs. And they are beasts. Commonly found by the beach, this grassy plant has tiny burrs with 1/4 inch spikes on them that catch onto anything that passes by: shoe laces, pant hems, beach bags. Trying to pull them out without tweezers is risky as the spikes can go into your fingers. They feel like needles going deep into your skin.
On a recent weekend to the Gulf, the trek to the shore from our beach house was through an empty lot that had several of these sand burr plants. We didn't know it at the time, however, and came back with spiky burrs attached to the bottoms of our flip flops. Unbeknownst to us, these burrs were then transferred to the carpets in the bedrooms. On that first afternoon, you heard a number of "Ouch!" "What is that?" "Did I step on glass?" comments coming from the various rooms as people stepped on the nasty spikes. We quickly discovered the burrs and how they were getting in the house. From that moment on, we watched carefully where we walked and checked our flip flops for burrs before entering the house ... most of the time.
It reminded me of the way Satan sneakily creeps into our lives: latching on when we don't pay attention, finding different ways to eerily infiltrate our families and causing so much pain that could have been prevented had we been watching for Him. I watched as Satan did just that between friends who loved each other so much they thought they were impervious to that kind of trickery. But alas, no one is truly safe from the evil one. We know as Christians we are to armor up against such attacks (Eph. 6:10-17), but without a reminder once and awhile, we may forget to put on that protection and watch for the one who seeks to devour us (1 Peter 5:8). Precautions will be taken in future situations so that Satan will not have that kind of access, and hopefully repercussions will be minor as folks recognize the culprit. However, we allowed it to occur in the first place.
Praying we carefully examine our surroundings, ask for God's blessings and protection in our homes and relationships and forthrightly remove ourselves from circumstances that appear askew. May we always remember to Whom we belong and that our actions reflect it ... before getting stuck by the burrs of sin Satan hopes become commonplace in destruction of our love for one another and destruction of our obedience to the One who loves us most.
