05/16/2024
Weeds
They seem to show up out of nowhere. Sometimes they stand alone and at other times they spread like wildfire, covering ground with unprecedented speed. Some tantalize our senses with pretty blooms in vibrant colors. They are persistent and hardy, finding footholds in everything from well-tilled, fertile soil to hard dry clay… from wide open fields to the tiniest of cracks and crevices. Most importantly, they are hard to eliminate once they find a home.
As the title of today’s blog suggests, I am talking about w**ds. But, I could just as easily be talking about temptations … distractions … negative thoughts … and the like, since these are the making of the “w**ds” that invade our lives.
Today, I was at one of the churches that I serve. It was a beautiful day, and I had noticed on a previous trip that the flower beds were filling with w**ds and the shrubbery was growing out of control. I decided it was time to do something before it was too late.
To the casual passersby, had it not been for the fact that the grass had been cut, it might appear that the building was not being used. The fact is, the building is being used … on a regular basis. The congregation, small as it is, spends their discipleship time and energy outside of worship maintaining a food pantry and providing groceries to families in the area. I would argue that their priorities are in the right place.
That said, I couldn’t help but make the connection between the condition of the church’s landscape, and what can happen to the condition of our hearts (and in our relationship with God) if we are not careful.
No matter how busy we get or how much good we are doing, the “flower beds” of our lives still needed tending.
As I sat pulling w**ds, I lost count of the number of different types of w**ds growing in such a limited space. I noticed that in some cases, removing the w**ds was fairly simply, requiring only that I grab them as close to the ground as possible and pull gently. Unfortunately, that was not the case for all of the w**ds. There were even a few that left the root behind. Only by digging in the dirt/mud was I able to remove the whole w**d, and only time will tell if that extra effort was enough.
Likewise, when “w**ds” are allowed to grow in our hearts, or even just our schedules, untended, their roots become harder and harder to remove. If we’re being honest, there are some of the w**ds that have such pretty flowers that we may consciously or subconsciously decide that we actually like them, and by our inaction, allow them to establish in us a long-term home. Then, of course, there are the “w**ds” that we don’t know are w**ds until the damage is done.
Whatever the source or the type of w**d that wants to grow in us, we must be diligent. We must not get so caught up on the good we are doing with our hands and feet, that we forget to tend to our “flower beds” (hearts). Take it from me… all the good in the world being done can quickly be overshadowed by a fast-growing invasive w**d.
We wouldn’t want any casual “passersby” to think, even for a minute, that our “buildings” (lives) are not being used. And, we wouldn’t want the world’s view of God’s house to be obstructed because we were too busy to do a little w**ding.
Blessings,
Blake
