Crabs In A Bucket

Crabs in a Bucket

Their mouths are full of cursing, lies, and threats. Trouble and evil are on the tips of their tongues.

As my middle schooler broke down in tears, confessing that they’d avoided working on assigned math homework for months due to classmates’ mockery, my heart broke.

Lord, help me! I pled silently, enveloping a smallish body in a bear hug. As we pulled apart, I cupped their no-longer-tiny face in my hands and whispered with hot conviction, “Do not let them steal your future. They are telling you lies.”

It was time to tell my baby adult the story of the crabs in the bucket. It goes like this: if there is only one crab in the small bucket, it can climb out and escape. However, when there is more than one crab in the bucket, they focus on pulling down the others attempting to climb out. The result? They all wind up on the dinner plate when they could have otherwise easily escaped.

Some people are like the crabs in the bucket, emotionally pulling down everyone around them because of their own insecurity and pain. While I am desperate for my children to generously show love to such hurting people, I also want them to be wise and discerning, recognizing the metaphorical crabs in their circles.

As my child and I talked, I explained that when they avoided math due to embarrassment, they gave their classmates significant power to impact their future choices and potential careers in mathematical fields. Given the opportunity, our enemy will sneakily hijack the hurtful words of others in an attempt to derail God’s intended plans for us. This is a lesson that goes far beyond a middle school classroom. How often do we allow others to drip poisonous lies into our ears that change the trajectory of our lives?

Being women who love and follow the way of Christ requires us to recognize the lies offered by a hurting, insecure world. We can be kind, compassionate people who at the same time do not allow the words of others to steal our future choices.

— Julie

— Today’s Act of Friendship —

Ask God to help you distinguish holy correction and discipline, sent through sincere hearts and lips, from pure poison sent by our enemy.