Root of Bitterness

"Get a move on, Josh," said Luke as he scraped the dishes and piled them on the counter. "You're being lazy. Do your share of the work!"Josh stopped daydreaming and slowly filled the dishwasher. "I'm doing my share," he muttered."You are not!" Luke replied angrily."Boys, boys!" Mom said as she entered the kitchen. "I'm tired of the constant bickering going on between you two. You're brothers, and you should love each other.""Love? Who could love him?" Luke asked. "Every time we do anything, Josh drags his feet, so I end up doing most of the work.""That's not true!" Josh shot back. "Mom, he's always picking on me!""That's it!" said Mom. "You boys apparently need to work off some extra steam. When the dishwasher is loaded, we're all going out to the berry patch to pull crabgrass.""Aw, Mom!" The boys tried to protest, but soon they all were busy in the garden. By the time they were done, the boys were hot, dusty, and too tired to fight. They sat down while Mom went in and got a pitcher of cool lemonade and some snacks."You know, boys," Mom said as she poured them lemonade, "this makes me think of a verse in the Bible that talks about a root of bitterness growing and causing trouble in our relationships. I can see that bitterness is springing up between you two. It could destroy your friendship just like this crabgrass could destroy our strawberry patch. We had to dig out the crabgrass to protect the strawberries. Now let's work on digging the bitterness out of your relationship so you can be friends again. Okay?"The boys looked at each other and nodded. "All right," said Mom. "We'll start by asking God to help us. Let's pray that He will guide our conversation and bring to light anything that was said or done that is causing bitterness to grow in your hearts--and that He would help you forgive each other and love each other not just as brothers in this family, but brothers in Christ." Mom bowed her head to pray, and the boys did the same. Then, as they sipped lemonade, they talked about their differences and how to resolve them. -Phyllis M. Robinson