Sin and Weed

I feel Him in the dirt beneath my bare feet.
I smell Him in the wind of wide, open spaces as it kisses my face.
I move to bring forth life with tiny seeds - carefully tucking them
away in the ground as I whisper a prayer: "grow."
And in my absence, in the quiet of the night, during the morning
symphony of bird song and dew fall, He works.

His movements are so subtle, so exact - as He takes what I have
planted and brings it to fruition in His time. I am incapable of calling
down the rain or telling the sun where to shine. I am not the conductor of
the elements - only the messenger. The seed planter. A life bearer.
A co-creator working with my soul in His hand.
Hoping for a harvest. Helplessly abandoned to His will for the land, my soul.
It makes me feel small; covered by the creative genius of my God.




I love gathering what He creates when I am away -
walking in the rows and pulling back the leaves to see
what gifts He has prepared.

And in the midst of all that beauty, there are weeds.
At first they are small - seemingly insignificant.
Innocently my plants wrap themselves around and around the weeds
as they grow side by side... until the weed eventually kills the entire plant.
Choking it to death. Stealing all of its resources.
Sucking the very life from the roots. A garden tragedy.

I spent hours and hours separating my pea vines from weeds this season.
Tenderly pulling the plant from the enemy. If the plant should break at
all during the process - the whole thing will die along with the weed.

Those weeds reminded me of SINS IN MY LIFE.
If not methodically and intentionally removed, they will succeed in taking
the life of the plant. Our lives. Without a plan of action - a course of healing -
the weeds will win the battle for our souls.

I lost some plants this summer. The weeds became too big.
So mighty. And my plants LOVED them. They gave themselves over
and there was NOTHING I could do to save them from their choice.

What do we wrap ourselves around? What do we give ourselves
over to for the thrill of the moment? God is in the garden and in the business
of professional weed removal. I've seen His work. I know the love
He has for each plant. But I'm only the messenger. The seed planter.
The one who prays: "grow."

Master of the elements, Keeper of souls,
Maker of beautiful life, steal me away from the weeds
so that I may bear fruit.