Weeds

 "And other seed fell among the  thorns (weeds), and the thorns came up and choked them out." Matthew 13:7

....."The only thing you have to do to let weeds thrive is nothing. And nothing is a choice." Alicia Britt Chole

Anyone who has ever planted a garden knows the wearisome task of constantly having to "weed it." You can grow beautiful things in a garden, but always, if left unattended, those beautiful plants and flowers will be invaded by and eventually strangled by the always encroaching weeds. Doing nothing is a choice, but it's a choice that brings death. So it is in our spiritual lives as well. The "weeds" of this world and of the enemy are always seeking to invade our hearts, minds, and souls. Where are they taking root in your life and mine?

In the parable of the sower in Matthew 13, Jesus was talking about good seed, seed that bore fruit, and seed that bore no fruit at all. The latter type of seed failed to produce for various reasons; shallow soil, rocky ground, and the above mentioned thorns and weeds. When the human race fell through the sin of Adam and Eve, a world that was not meant to experience these "weeds" came into being. The ability to plant and bring forth fruit remained, but now the Adversary, Satan, would actively oppose the fruitfulness of the human race God had created. Man would have to produce the fruit by the sweat of his brow. God could and would bless, but it was up to the man to tend his "garden." How are we tending ours?

God is constantly planting His "seed" into the hearts and lives of His people. He means for that seed to bear much spiritual fruit. Fruit that produces ever deepening knowledge of Him. Fruit that yields joy, peace, strength, and His abundant love. But those seeds must be tended to, cultivated. The enemy of our soul does not wish that any of these things be realized in us, so his many kinds of "weeds" are planted all around our hearts, seeking to choke out the life He has given us. They take the form of many different things, some of them quite beautiful. His weeds often don't look like weeds at all, but the reality is, anything in the garden of our heart that pulls us away from Him is a weed, no matter how lovely it may appear. What "lovely" weeds have been appearing in your garden? How much of His life in you are they choking out?

The evangelist James Robison once said that the Lord got hold of him and whispered, "There are too many rocks and weeds in your garden." Too many other "things" were choking His life in him. He was being told that he needed to tend his garden......and tend it immediately. What do we need to tend to immediately? What weeds and rocks need to be removed from the gardens of our heart? Where are they increasing while His life is diminishing? 

There's been a popular program that details what the earth would be like if the human race vanished. The remarkable thing is that huge cities would quickly be overrun by a nature that would be relentless in claiming ground it had surrendered to the workings of men. What had once been bustling centers of human life were now dead, empty, jungle covered shells. Sin is like that in the heart left untended. It chokes out and destroys that which had been His. May we be vigilant that we hear His voice, heed His commands, and tend the gardens of our hearts.....before there is no garden left to tend.

Blessings,
Pastor O