“I went past the field of a sluggard,
past the vineyard of someone who has no sense;
thorns had come up everywhere,
the ground was covered with weeds,
and the stone wall was in ruins.” – Proverbs 24:30-31
One of the most time-consuming parts of gardening
Is dealing with weeds
They grow so quickly
Robbing the grass and flowers of nutrients
They must be pulled up by the roots
A violent act
Requiring effort and strength
Sometimes their root is strong and deep
And hard to pull
“The seed falling among the thorns refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful.’ – Matthew 13:22
As I walk around the cottage this morning
And up the road where we drove yesterday
So anxious to get here
I notice beautiful wildflowers
Tiny blue dragonflies their wings too translucent for my lens
In amidst acres of weeds, poisonous berries, and poison ivy
And I reflect on the state of my own heart
And wonder how many weeds there are to pull there
The weeds of envy, unforgiveness, and bitterness
The weeds of false ambition and pride
Weeds that have no place in a garden
For weeds are ugly things
They rob the tender buds from the nutrients they need to bloom
How often has unconfessed sin kept fruit from growing in my life?
Have I been willing, like the gardener,
To pull it up from the root?
Or rather have I watered it and allowed it to grow
Unchecked
“Jesus told them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.’” – Matthew 13:24-26
A small snail makes its slow way across the path
Navigating the weeds grown between the stones
I’m glad I didn’t accidentally step on him as I was walking
Along the path
“’Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’” – Matthew 13:30
“Things tend to disorder”
The truth that makes Darwinism impossible to believe
And yet, how true is this in my own life
My heart a wild thing
Rebelling against the discipline it needs
Preferring so often chaos to order
Slumber to exercise
A delicious donut over a warm cup of oatmeal
And the sweet sparkle of soda over the clear goodness of water
How often do I choose the thing I should not choose?
Choose to start my list over spending time in prayer?
Choose to put my own busyness ahead of the quiet my soul needs?
How often have I chosen to speak when I should have been listening?
Chosen to act when I should have been waiting?
Chosen to ignore the still small voice whispering
This is the way- walk in it.
“The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all who do evil.” – Matthew 13:31
The grass is covered with clover
And a low vine of morning glories makes it look like they are growing from the ground too
Their blushing white petals looking so delicate in the soft light
The bigger wild roses are losing their petals
The outer ones peeled back and falling away
Even as the new blossoms begin to bud
Somehow prettier that way despite the sharp thorns
And the deep red calliope grows in its ordered flowerbed
No weeds to disrupt the rich soil there
The work of the gardener’s hands
Today is a new day
An opportunity to let the master gardener work
To prepare the soil and pull the weeds is not a job for the faint of heart
It requires strength and courage
For my heart tends to disorder
As surely as the weeds along the path
Will grow up again even after they are pulled out
Especially if any of the root still remains
The still-closed buds remind me of the promise
And hint at the flowers about to bloom
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” – John 15:5
Wind and the Waves 