Weeds

For two days this week, I did yard work. Two sides of our house, the right side and the back had not been landscaped since we bought the house three years ago. Oh, I've kept the bushes trimmed, but never really given them the manicure they've needed. They've just been out of sight/out of mind. I've kept the front looking fairly well and the other side, that has all the air conditioner "stuff" in it, is hidden by a big bush, so all my efforts really had to go into caring for the right side and back, which, definitely had been neglected. To say these two places needed attention is an understatement. To say these two spaces were eye sores is the truth. I knew what I had to do, but didn't want to do it.

There's a difference between big weeds and little bitty weeds. With the little bitty weeds all I have to do is rub my hand over them, and they go away.

But with the bigger weeds, especially the ones that are illegal, I have to use the spade to uproot them and force them to come out. Yes it's illegal to have thistles growing in your yard, and the authorities (whoever they are) can make you pull them up as well as make you mow your yard when it's over nine inches tall.

Weeding is very painful to me. If I weed standing up, I have to bend way over, which hurts my back. If I weed sqwatting down it hurts my knees. If I try to weed sitting on a very small stool it does get me closer to the ground, but is not as effective as weeding on my knees. Even though it hurts me the most, I can see the weeds the clearest, which enables me to pull them the easiest. There is absolutely no position I can get into that's not painful.

It's repetitious. I get up, I move my stool. I sit down. I grab a weed and either pull it up or cut it down. If it's small it goes by quickly. If it's large, it takes more time. And then I do it again and again and again.

If I try to do less, the job still has to be done, the yard doesn't look any better and I know, it's going to be harder to do the next time, if I don't do it now.

If I leave the job undone, the weeds are going to take over.

Knowing what needs to be done, just doesn't cut it (no pun intended).

When I have sin in my life, I have to get rid of it. Yes, when Jesus died, he took away my sin (justification) once for all, but He also expects me to grow into His likeness, (sanctification) in order for the "beauty" of Christ to be seen in me. Obviously, sins are the weeds in my life. Some of them are big and some of them are little bitty. (I'm not talking about degrees here, but how difficult they are to get rid of.) Some of them can be taken care of almost instantly. While others, take a lifetime.

The damage sin causes is far reaching. Some people, cause so much damage to the people around them that they have to be completely removed, even imprisoned, like thistles, while others contaminate the people around them, like dandelions, while still others, disguise themselves as pure, like wild strawberrys. Each of these are in my yard and I have to deal with each because they're all weeds.

It's very hard for me to get rid of the sin in my life because I know the road ahead is going to be very painful. It's so much easier to do nothing, than to put forth the effort I know it's going to take. But, remaining in sin only makes it grow deeper. Some sins are hard to break and have to be forced out, while others can be easily removed and almost brushed away.

God has a way of humbling me. I can try to remain standing, which makes getting rid of the sin in my life, the hardest. I can bend, which still doesn't "cut it." I can half sit and half stand, which keeps me on the fence. I can sit near the earth, which is "His footstool" or I can get on my knees, to see the sin the clearest, so He can remove it, even though it's painful--to Him and to me.

Keeping myself free from sin is repetitious. There are certain things God and I have to do everyday. He reaches down, to lift me up. He reaches down, to pull me up. He reaches down to give me strength to cut the sin out of my life. And it is an on-going process.

Removing sin is easier if I have the right equipment. Removing weeds, I had to use a spade, a knee pad, a stool, a lopper, a bucket, a trash can and a liner. With sin

I have to have the proper equipment to help me "stand my ground" against Satan. Ephesians 6 tells me I need the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the

helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. The words "Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." in the NIV reads "Wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." in the KJ version. The word for "in the evil day" comes from the word corrupted, which to me, represents the weeds in this analogy. In order to "stand my ground" today, I must not be corrupted. The ground I stand on, must be free from weeds.

How can I possibly do this with so much sin in my life, all my life?One day at a time. One bucket at a time. Filling a five gallon bucket was not difficult at all because I filled it a little at a time. However, if all I saw was the emptiness of the thirty-five gallon bucket, I would have probably felt defeated and never filled it up.

Now that I've gotten rid of the weeds, the landscaping is beautiful. And now I can plant flowers. Even though each of us is already beautiful in God's eyes, the more weeds we remove, the more we can smell the aroma of Christ. "We are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life."

Jesus Rose of Sharon, bloom with in my heart;

Beauties of Thy truth and holiness impart,

That where'er I go my life may shed abroad

Fragrance of the knowledge of the love of God.

Knowing I need to remove the weeds, just doesn't "cut it." It's only when I remove the "weeds" in my life that I can finally grow.