What are the ‘little foxes’ in your life?

In the staff meeting this morning, the person leading talked about a passage in Song of Songs (no, not that one…) which reads: “Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom” (Song of Songs 2:15). She felt led to find out more about these pesky little foxes and exactly how they ruin the vineyards.

Apparently, because little foxes can’t quite reach the grapes up on the vines, they dig holes and passages that loosen the soil around vines, preventing a stable root system and effectively killing the plant. Her take on this was that it’s the little, unacknowledged sins in our lives that can quietly take root when ignored and eventually derail us. But God gently prods us to make small changes so that we can become better versions of ourselves. 

Someone once said that your everyday habits create the sum total of you. Quite scary, when I think about the amount of sharing crisps I consumed, but did not share, this winter. I’m writing this at the beginning of Lent, a time when the whole Church looks favourably upon taking up new habits – albeit presumably temporary ones.

I’ll be watching my sins and my sharing for this period and I hope that by the time this is published, I’ll be a whole new me! Well, we’ll see. But don’t worry if you didn’t ‘do’ Lent; if you want to start or trial something new, the best time to start is now. Apparently it only takes three weeks to form a new habit, so check in with yourself when the next issue comes around and see how you’re doing.

Happy Easter!