Spiritual Thoughts

For those that may not live in the south-eastern United States, let me give you a little glimpse into the world out here.  There is something amazing and beautiful about nature in North Carolina.  You see animals, bugs and other creatures crawling, scampering, running, hiding, jumping, slithering, and pretty much every other verb you can think of.  Only second to the wildlife are the remarkable forests!  They are amazing and beautiful… from a distance.  But a close inspection reveals an intricate system of trees, plants, vines, shrubs and noxious weeds!  Abandoned lots quickly become overgrown and impassible, providing a living warning of the effects of neglect to all those who pass.

It just so happens that we to live in one of these beautiful forests, complete with vines and dozens of 40 ft. pine trees.  As you can imagine, it can sometimes be overwhelming to keep on top of the yard.   I have found that there is a sad pattern I follow every year with my yard and garden that I am going to call it the garden cycle.  Every Spring I spend countless hours in the yard.  I clean up the left-over leaves from the winter.  I gather the left over pine needles from the trees.  I mulch around the trees and bushes.  And I spend days tilling the garden and putting in an awesome and amazing vegetable garden.  I straighten all the brick borders from around the yard.  I round-up the weeds growing in the sidewalk and other places.  I venture into the woods and hunt out the poison ivy and oak and kill it using what ever means necessary.  I sow seed and mow perfect lines into my perfect lawn.  When it is done I sit back and I admire the labors of my hands, for it is good!

For a couple of weeks it is so exciting!  I look forward to mowing the lawn and bringing that shine back to my yard.  We go out to our garden every day to see the progress of our seeds.  We rejoice as the bean’s push their way through the soil to toward the sunlight.  We look forward with anticipation at the day when we get to enjoy the first fruits of our labors.

And then the weeds come.

And the excitement dies.

Before I know it, the weeds have taken over all but the strongest plants and they aren’t producing much any more.  The bricks are all messed up from the kids playing soccer in the yard.  The weeds are pushing up through the mulch around the trees.  The And most of all… I am tired.  I let it go, telling myself I will start again next year.

This story repeats itself again the next year, and to some extent that is okay, for each year I make some improvements and I get a little better.  Some years are better than others, but I have not given up.

You surely have already begun to see the similarities between the garden and our lives.   Our personal gardens, our bodies and our souls, are wonderful and amazing!  But in this life there are many poison vines, weeds and other noxious plants that are constantly trying to find their way in.  With constant vigilance we can protect ourselves from the buffetings of Satan and those that labor with him.  Sometimes we don’t get those weeds out when they start to creep in, and if we are not careful, they will begin to take over.

Remember, if we ever find ourselves in a place where the weeds become too much and we just want to give up, The Master Gardener is waiting to help us with our chores.  In the most famous garden of all, He paid for our negligence.  Because of that great sacrifice, He can come into our lives and, as we repent, remove those weeds.  He can till the earth up and make it perfect again.  What a wonderful blessing that has been in my life.  Just like spring, I can start over again, and with His help, each season I can become a better gardner of my soul.

References:

• Jacob 5 – Allegory of the Olive Tree
• Mark 4: 1-20 – Parable of the Sower
• Early Morning Weeding
• The Garden – Michael McLean and Josh Neubert