Please pass the fruit, I’d like a juicy bite for myself. Oh, you can blame Eve all you want, but I am no different. She followed her heart and usually there’s a big price for following your deceitful heart.
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” Jeremiah 17:9 (NIV)
Can I please have some cash?
On the way to see a friend, I stopped at an Amish fruit stand. After all, I invited myself to dinner. Actually, I invited myself to stay the night too, but she already had an overnight guest, so I booked myself a bed at another friend’s house and settled for a fabulous dinner and conversation.
Not wanting to show up empty handed, I stopped at a roadside fruit stand and picked out a basket of peaches. There was a basket of plums that looked delicious too, so I grabbed both. When I got to the register to pay, they wanted cash. They’re Amish, remember? Anyway, if you know me, you know I’d be hard pressed to come up with 64 cents in my purse. Walking across the parking lot, I approached the car and my husband rolled the window down. Like a 9-year-old, I asked for money. Handing me a twenty, he said, “You should carry some cash.” Yeah, I know. He’s right, I really should.
I took all those peaches and all those plums to my friend. She lives alone, but as far as I can tell, she usually isn’t. Like me, she enjoys entertaining. Unlike me, she’s got some super skills in the hosting department.
I’m going to be honest here; after I left, I regretted not keeping a peach or two for myself. In fact, I couldn’t stop thinking about the aroma and juicy flavor. I set my heart on a fresh peach.
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Matthew 6:21 (ESV)
Fruit stands and critters
The following weekend I took my mom on a road trip to see my grandbabies. Oh, and my daughter and son-in-law too, but those grandbabies are pretty special. Somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Missouri, we passed a little cottage on the side of the road with a sign that said, “peaches.” Ahh, at last. I slowed the car, but it didn’t look like it was open, so I kept going. Surely, I’d find another opportunity. Now, I was on a mission.
After several miles of nothing, I saw a big sign that said tomatoes. I didn’t want a tomato, but I figured peaches and tomatoes hang out together in produce stands, so I turned left off the highway. Two miles down a narrow, nearly gravel road, I parked in front of a good-sized produce stand. Tomatoes were plentiful, along with cantaloupes and the biggest squash and zucchini I’ve ever seen. There was even a racoon in a cage (yeah, I didn’t see that coming either). But no peaches. Since I’d driven so far, I bought a watermelon and moved on.
After an exhausting weekend in melting heat, I didn’t hesitate when I saw the peach stand on the way back. Mom stayed in the car and I walked past the watermelons outside. Opening the door, I heard a loud, and rather spooky, “Whooo, whooo,” emanating from a mechanical owl. Its head turned back and forth, and its eyes glowed an eerie orange. No one was inside, so I assumed the owl alerted someone in the nearby house to come and wait on me.
Lo and behold, there were peaches and plums too. No one ever came, so I went ahead and cinched up the plastic sacks lining the little crates and took my treasures to the counter. About eighty dollars sat near the register.
At this point I assumed it was a self-service situation. Because I listened to advice, I had a ten-dollar bill in my purse, which I stacked on top of the cash that was already there and headed out the door. The loud owl bid me farewell, then a skinny lady with a scowl blocked my exit.
“What are you doing?” she asked. Explaining my thought process, she retorted, “that’s only for the watermelons.” Okaaay…
Picking up the stack of cash and quickly assessing the value, she asked, “Where did this come from?” All this interrogation over my obsession to get a peach. As her wheels turned, she admitted she left the money there and “had too much going on.” Yeah lady, I get that.
Not wanting to spend my precious cash, I took back the ten and offered my credit card to her Square. The stern look returned to her face, “That thing doesn’t work.” This was getting way too complicated, and when I left that creepy owl hooted at me one last time.
Not only were the plums so sour I couldn’t eat them, there were also barcoded stickers on the fruit. Wasted time down a country road followed by the sour fruit of deception. Really, if I wanted store bought fruit I’d go to Kroger.
My desire led to determination, which led me astray.
“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned-every one-to his own way.” Isaiah 53:6 (NLT)
Where is my credit card?
The next day at the eye doctor, I reached into my purse for my credit card to pay for my contacts, but it wasn’t there. How did I get here? I’ve asked myself the same question about other selfish pursuits too.
It all started with desire. O Lord, align my heart with Yours!
The scary thing is, we get what we want. So, be careful what you want.
“Delight yourself also in the Lord. And He shall give you the desires of your heart.” Psalms 37:4 (NKJV)
Following your heart
Apparently, the Amish plums were better. My friend made a plum tart and served it to her guests.
The Lord reminded me to guard my heart because whether I intend to or not, I will follow it.
“Keep vigilant watch over your heart; that’s where life starts.” Proverbs 4:23 (MSG)
Thank you so much for sharing this today Vickie.
I now need to find me some peaches and plums and try to bake in this heat wave we are having in Texas. Thank you for sharing!
Words of wisdom. Thanks for the blogs. I learn something new each one