Chasing Furies song Thicker reminds me of one of Jesus’ parables. When Jesus shared the Parable of the Sower in public, the disciples were confused and dumbfounded. Subsequently, these 12 men approached Jesus in private to understand the point of his analogy. Jesus was trying to stress the importance of soil types, the environments in which you live. If you allow yourself to be surrounded by negative influences, you will struggle to grow and mature as a Christian.
As for what was sown on thin (rocky) soil, this is he who hears the Word and at once welcomes and accepts it with joy; 21 Yet it has no real root in him, but is temporary (inconstant, [i]lasts but a little while); and when affliction or trouble or persecution comes on account of the Word, at once he is caused to stumble [he is repelled and [j]begins to distrust and desert Him Whom he ought to trust and obey] and he falls away. 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is he who hears the Word, but the cares of the world and the pleasure and delight and glamour and deceitfulness of riches choke and suffocate the Word, and it yields no fruit, Matthew 13:20-22.
At the present time, the beginning of 2023, you may find yourself trampled, compressed by heartaches in life. Maybe rocks are your problem, holding you back from sprouting to your full potential? Then again, sticker bushes and thickets could be the source of your pain, suffocating your life from experiencing joy, John 10:10. Whatever your stumbling block may be as you enter 2023, may the lyrics of Thicker help you start to spiritually weed your current environment so that the soil you dwell in improves immensely this year.
by Jay Mankus