Weeds in My Garden/Weeds in Me

We were gone from home about sixteen days. Before we left, the gardens around our place were in fairly good shape, not weedless but under control. Sixteen days later and the weeds have taken over. Yuk! My only hope at the moment is frost in October but I know I have to do something sooner about them than letting the natural salvation of frost save me. It isn't quite August yet. October is a long way off. Before I left on vacation, I washed all my gardening gloves and they are on a pile in the garagewaiting to be used. I'd better get at that today.

Last night, I went to our church counsel meeting with a young girl I had been mentoring for membership. In our church tradition, we call what she was doing as "making profession of her faith in Jesus Christ as her Savior". Elise and I met about eight times over the course of about ten weeks. We studied the truths of the Bible through the teachings of a book for that purpose. We got to know and appreciate each other. She is a wonderful young lady just filled with gifts and abilities. While we were visiting with the elders, one of the elders talked with us about the importance of confessing our sins and allowing Jesus to cleanse us so that we can be the kind of people God wants us to be, reflecting His beauty.

That sort of relates to my weed problem in the garden. As long as I was home and could take out the weeds every few days, the flowers grew well, they were healthy and they granted beauty to those who viewed them. When I, as God's child, regularly confess my sins and allow the cleansing blood of Jesus to remove my sins, I grow well, I am spiritually and emotionally healthy, and I can show Christ's beauty to those with whom I come into contact. But just as my gardens filled with ugly weeds while I didn't tend to them ; if I neglect my time with Jesus and not ask Him to forgive those things that displease Him, the sin in me becomes detrimental to me and everyone else and I quit growing and turn ugly.

There are so many lessons in nature that underscore the teaching that God gives us in His Word about the way we are to live and what results we can expect when we do what He says or when we choose to go our own way. Dear Lord, give us eyes to see and clear understanding of the importance of living your way. Help us to see the weeds in our own lives and confess them to you knowing that the result is beauty and peace as you restore us to yourself".