Last weekend we accomplished our annual task of mulching our flower beds. It's a refreshing sight to have freshly edged and weeded beds get their warm blanket of mulch each spring. My husband and I also recently celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary and there is one step to the mulching process he has always insisted we never skip: preen! When we first got married, this was a new concept for me to learn. I had never heard of it or witnessed the delightful miracle of preen. The first couple of years, he would scold me for not putting enough on and sure enough, a couple months later I would need to visit my flower beds and weed. It was a task I quickly despised. Now I have finally learned that, when applied liberally, I can get away with only weeding twice a year! That magical barrier has become a time saver!
I couldn't help but think how this can be true in the spiritual realm. If we're not careful, the sinful world will sow seeds of weeds into our hearts and minds. What is the condition of our soil? Is it rich and fertile? Is it rocky and hard? Do the weeds of the world overtake the soil of our lives and choke out God's truth and presence?
In Matthew 13:1-23 we find a parable of the soils told by Jesus. Seed was sown and some landed on the pathway, where the birds ate it before it had a chance to grow. Other seed landed on the rocky soil, where it grew at first, but then got scorched by the sun. Some seed fell among the thorns, where it was choked. And still, other seed fell on rich, fertile soil where it produced a crop.
Which kind of soil is a representation of our lives? Has the evil one snatched away the seeds of truth and stolen a life rooted in Christ? Were we excited and passionate about our Christian life at one time, but the hardness of our hearts hasn't allowed future growth? Perhaps, we have rich fertile soil and we see evidence of seed growth, but are there subtle weeds that are also growing? Did we forget the "preen barrier" of prayer and daily devotions?
Just like gardening requires daily maintenance, so do our spiritual lives. Our soil needs fed, tilled, watered by spiritual disciplines like devotions, going to church, and spending time in prayer. We need to be on guard and proactive in protection against the growth of weeds before they quickly and quietly take over and choke growth away.
Galations 6:6-10 in the Message says:
6 Be very sure now, you who have been trained to a self-sufficient maturity, that you enter into a generous common life with those who have trained you, sharing all the good things that you have and experience.
7 Don't be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others - ignoring God! -
8 harvests a crop of weeds. All he'll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God's Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life.
9 So let's not allow ourselves to get fatigued doing good. At the right time, we will harvest a good crop if we don't give up, or quit.
10 Right now, therefore, every time we get the chance, let us work for the benefit of all, starting with the people closest to us in the community of faith.
I don't know about you, but when my time on Earth is complete and I am looking into the face of my Savior, I do not want to be presenting to Him a harvest of weeds grown from seeds of selfishness. Let's be tender gardeners of our souls! Striving for growth. Pursuing purity. Working diligently for a bountiful harvest... with no weeds in sight!
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