Beyond Common Sense

Well, this had been an interesting week.  The foot is not broken, but is sporting some very lovely colors!  I’m still hobbling around, but was able to get into the garden two mornings.  Oh, what we can learn from those weeds.!

1. Timing: The best time to weed is when the ground is wet – no problem there!  However, too wet is just as much a problem as dry. Thursday and Friday were the days to do it, sore foot or no sore foot.  The Lord gave me beautiful cool, low humidity weather – perfect! LESSON: when God has sent the rain of conviction and softened the ground of your heart, and then sends the Son to shine upon you through His Word: that is the time to work on the weeds in your heart.  We often don’t want to deal with the issues at hand – waiting for a better day, or warding off God’s prodding.  Nothing is more deadly.
2. If you don’t get the root, you may as well not weed.  I use a long and short handled claw to dig them up, hoeing deep into the soil to accomplish the task. LESSON: dig deep!  I think I’ve said that before, but it is good advice, worth repeating! J  The only way for the Lord to “plant my feet on higher ground” is for me to take the time to go deeper into God’s word!
3. There are all sorts of weeds.  Some have long roots that go toChina; some just crawl along the surface.  Some stand alone; others join forces, spreading their roots underground, like grass.  I HATE grass in my garden. Mint is lovely to smell, but unless you want it all over your garden, don’t plant it – mint also spreads like wildfire!  LESSON: Know your weeds and handle them correctly.  Some take a lifetime to root out and may have to be fought as long as we have this clay!  Some are chain reactions connected to other weeds.  You might be working on the weed of anger, only to unearth the weed of bitterness or rebellion.  They’re all weeds cluttering up our gardens of life and stunting the growth of the fruit we want to bear for the Savior.
4. As I was furiously clawing the dirt around my onions, I pulled up some tiny onions that must have sprouted later.  Once they’re uprooted, their growing is done.  This was a hard lesson for me, but very necessary; AND this lesson is especially for you older Christians.  (Older in your Christian walk, not necessarily older in age!)  Be careful with the young plants – those folks around you that are young or newer or not as far down the road of Christian experience as you are.  Sometimes we try to press them into the mold that God has fashioned for us, but they are not ready for it.  We can do great damage, perhaps even wounding them for life!

Here’s another before and after picture. (plus some prints of our local bear’s visit – a little too close to the house for my liking!) It’s work dear reader, but it is SO worth it, physically and even more so spiritually!