I wish I had gone out yesterday and taken a picture of our property. We’ve been gone four weeks and the weeds are almost out of control.
Dave is so faithful to keep the weeds sprayed but while we’ve been gone, we’ve had rain and they have gone wild. He came in for a drink and told me that he had to chop the biggest ones down and now he was on his third batch of spray.
Oh my!
The heat, rain and humidity have caused our yard to bloom and look beautiful but it has also caused the weeds to flourish.
Isn’t that just like life?
We go along trusting the Lord, having our quiet time, reading our Bibles, (and our favorite morning devotional), taking time to talk with the Lord in prayer. Things might not always be smooth but our focus is on the Lord and we know with Him present we will weather any storms and things will be well.
Then something happens and we get distracted. Little weeds start to grow; discouragement, worry, fear, sarcasm, unexpected set backs. We’ll deal with them later, after all, it’s only a couple of weeds and they aren’t very big.
“ I walked past a field that belonged to a lazy man. It was a vineyard that belonged to someone who understood nothing. 31 Weeds were growing everywhere! Wild vines covered the ground, and the wall around the vineyard was broken and falling down. 32 I looked at this and thought about it. This is what I learned: 33 a little sleep, a little rest, folding your arms, and taking a nap— 34 these things will make you poor very quickly. Soon you will have nothing, as if a thief broke in and took everything away.” Proverbs 24:30-34 ERV
Have you ever noticed that the weeds grow faster than the flowers? It’s that way with the weeds of life, Jesus called them the cares of this life. Some weeds are small and can be pulled up easily by the roots. Others have long roots and pulling them causes them to spread, they need to be sprayed. While others are tall and their stocks are too thick to be effected by the spray so they have to be chopped down and then sprayed.
We are told to take our cares to the Lord. He is a master gardener and has a way of removing with weeds without harming the good crop that is growing in our lives.
“ The seed that was planted among thorns is like some people who listen to the Word. 19 But the cares of this life let thorns come up. A love for riches and always wanting other things let thorns grow. These things do not give the Word room to grow so it does not give grain. ” Mark 4:18-19 NLV
“ Give all your worries to Him because He cares for you.” I Peter 5:7 NLV
“Do not worry. Learn to pray about everything. Give thanks to God as you ask Him for what you need. 7 The peace of God is much greater than the human mind can understand. This peace will keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7-8 NLV
Time for some good old fashioned weed extermination.
Spend time with the Lord this morning and let Him skillfully remove the weeds/cares that have been choking out the promises that God has made to you.