If you are like me you have been around church a very long time. And if you have, likely you have heard many messages about separating the chaff from your life. I may be the only one but I always came away with the impression that wheat represented the good things and chaff represented the bad things. And it does but that is not all it represents.
As farmers know, chaff is God’s great design for protecting the grain of wheat as it matures. The chaff is wrapped around the kernel and protects it from intense heat and from being blown off during high winds. But at some point the kernel is attached sufficiently to the stalk and has a skin thick enough for protection without the chaff. At that point in time the chaff loosens.
As I thought along this manner, God began to speak to me about some chaff in my life. Hold on, before your mind wanders. The things HE spoke to me about were not awful sins. They were just things no longer needful or valuable in my life. They had served their purpose but now God’s Spirit had moved me further along my path and I needed to let these things go.
At times, chaff can be representative of relationships in our lives. We often hear the phrase that some people are in your life for a reason and some for a season. When we sense the Spirit telling us to let go of certain relationships we need to obey. At times the Holy Spirit is saying the relationship has become a dependent one. If we hang on after being told to let go, it seems the only way to part from the relationship becomes a painful one. Other times the chaff is representative of activities. I am one of those people who tend to believe if God ever asked me to do something then HE meant for me to do it forever. That is not always true. There are seasons in our lives in which things God asks us to do are no longer required of us. Those times are always a challenge for me. The one thing I never want to do is disappoint Jesus by not obeying.
In scripture we read of threshing floors. That is where this separation takes place. As you read through the Word note the references on threshing floors. When I do it always seems to relate to something deeper than just the harvesting of the wheat. There seems to be the subtle reminder that we are always growing and changing. And that there is always a need to re-evaluate what and who is in our lives. We were never meant to be stagnant in our relationship with God. We should always be searching for ways to deepen our understanding of HIS Word and our quick obedience to the Spirit’s directives.
Hope to see you in a Tea Room soon,
Elizabeth