Thorns and Thistles are part of our world and when experiencing them we respond with “ouch.”  But, we also meet them as thorny people. Their attitude and countenance say, leave me alone.  You ask how they are doing but their response is a cold shoulder. OUCH. We think what did I do to deserve that? You fail to respond instantly when another is hurting and they offer unkind words. OUCH!   It seems they carry the weight of the world on their shoulders. They have been pricked and want you to feel their prick as well.  Yet holy people don’t prick with thorns but God’s compassion. The prescription is to

• Always rejoice.
• Constantly pray.
• In everything give thanks.

But how do we do that when with the thorny people who unruly, fainthearted, weak and yes antagonistic? We are to admonish them and to esteem them highly in love. The “thorns” remind you to rejoice, pray, and be grateful knowing that God is in charge, not us, and He is working this that they might know and trust Him in all circumstances.  This is God’s will for them and us because we are reconciled to Himself through Christ’s sacrificial death and are therefore a new creation in Christ.

Stop and think about this. When we respond in a thorny fashion we are grieving or extinguishing the Holy Spirit’s power. OUCH.  Don’t be a thorn. Today choose joy, prayer, and gratitude. Don’t let the thorns prick you taking away your joy and don’t you be a thorn in return. Listen carefully to the voice of the Spirit!