Weeds

I was out pulling weeds today – BIG weeds – taller than me in most places.

And there I was, allergic girl as I am, in the middle of the bed trying to pull out undesirable intruders.

There were so many I wasn’t even sure which was what but I went after the biggest, most obvious ones and as they were cleared away I could see the small ones that were in there hiding among the foliage.

Feet firmly planted in the dirt I tugged on each stem, close to the bottom, trying to pull it out root and all. Pulling with all my strength I sometimes came away with a stalk with the roots still attached! Other times I heard a snap and pulled up only part of the problem.

Where did these all come from?
But that really wasn’t the question.
The question was what was I going to do to get rid of them?

In Mark 4 Jesus shares the parable of the seed. A man was sowing seed - which represents God's Word - and it fell in various places and "other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants, so that they did not bear grain." Apparently weeds have been taking out the good stuff for a very long time...

What weeds am I dealing with? What sin in my life is taking root? What attitudes have overtaken the good soil of my heart like creeping charlie in a beautiful lawn?

And what will I do about it?

I have to get in there and start pulling: the obvious blatant things are first. I'd wish to get them root and all the first time but chances are that I won't, they will come back but then so must I. And then as the big things are eliminated I will begin to see the subtle thought processes and secret sins that dwell in my heart; they are closer to the ground but still as deadly in choking out the truth's God is planting.

It's not fun or pleasant to get that up close and personal with what shouldn't be there: to squarely face the fact of all that is in my heart that is choking out the fruit that is trying to grow there. It's taken all of my strength to tug out some stalks that have been there long enough to get thick and hardy.

My skin is itchy, my feet are covered in dirt, and I have no doubt I'll be sore tomorrow.
But the question is, what do I want?

Am I content to let any suggestion, motivation, sin, or attitude come into my heart and take root there? Do I want my heart to resemble a patch of weeds?

I want my heart to be a place where the soil is prepared; a place available and anxious for God to work in, so that when He moves in my heart I will bring forth fruit- some thirty, some sixty and some a hundredfold (Mark 4:20) and all for His praise and glory.

This heart, this life of mine will only last for a little while - what kind of garden do I want?