Cut Me Mick

A lot of people know one of my favorite movies is Rocky. There is this one scene where Rocky is towards the end of his fight with Apollo Creed, and he has taken a beating. His face is bruised and swollen. The world is shocked that this no name is still in the fight. As he sits in his corner with Mick, his trainer, he complains about not being able to see out of his eye, which is swollen shut. Mick wants to throw in the towel but Rocky wont allow it. Instead he orders Mick to cut open the swollen area of his eye. So gross and so cool.

As I write this, I have just begun some cutting of my own. I spent my day off landscaping my front yard. I am ashamed to admit that the weeds had taken over. It was looking pretty shabby. So I set out with some shears, a shovel, and a rake. A day later, 12 bags of mulch, and a bunch of sweat and I think it's looking pretty good.

Both Rocky, and my yard needed some cutting to reach their true potential. You and I are the same. If we are to grow to what God has planned us to be, we need to be pruned. Pruning is vital to reaching our rightful stature.

Sometimes we collect things in our life that weigh is down. Sometimes those things are even good. But I believe that good is the enemy of best. God wants only the best for us. We have to be willing to let go of good to embrace best. So when we are willing God will prune us. He will cut out bitterness, negative attitudes, doubt, and disbelief. When those weights are removed we are free to grow uninhibited.

The Bible says, No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

So yeah, it stings, even hurts. We don't like it. We would rather hang at the altar of the immediate. But if, and this is is a big if, we want to be all that we can possibly be, then bring on the pruning. In other words, cut me Mick.

That's my two cents.