Scriptural Foundation:
Luke 8:5-8 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
A farmer went out to sow seed. While he was scattering the seed, some of it fell beside the road. People walked on the seed, and the birds ate it all. 6 Other seed fell on rock. It began to grow but then died because it had no water. 7 Some other seed fell among thorny weeds. This seed grew, but later the weeds stopped the plants from growing. 8 The rest of the seed fell on good ground. This seed grew and made 100 times more grain.”
Jesus finished the story. Then he called out, “You people who hear me, listen!”
Luke 8: 14 Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
“What about the seed that fell among the thorny weeds? That is like the people who hear God’s teaching, but they let the worries, riches, and pleasures of this life stop them from growing. So they never produce a crop.
Reflection:
In or around the second week in June, it never fails, every year our front yard overnight becomes over run with weeds. It is like time and space speeds up in a blink of an eye. Our subdivision was built in the middle of a forest…that is a romantic idea…until we bagged about thirty plus bags of leaves our first fall. One moment the trees are budding and the next moment my husband and I are dragging many big bags of weeds to the curb…and that is just the front yard. This past year it was the worst, because it was our first year since we purchased this home a couple of years ago that we’re clearing out the gutters….did I mention that we lived in a forest…. There was so much debris that were in the gutters, but the worst one was one in the front of the house…the one that inspired this post.
I looked up one day and saw tall weeds growing in gutter! When my husband climbed up there, he found that the gutter was overflowing with soil…basically a make shift flower basket. It was evident that this particular gutter hadn’t been cleaned out for several seasons. The Lord spoke to my heart and said “My children maintain their hearts like you do your yard.” Well since, we do weeding about twice over the spring and summer months, He got my attention. As with everything, I asked Him to give me a scripture. The Holy Spirit brought me to Luke’s gospel. As Believers, we have an obligation as ambassadors for Christ to main a constant connection with the Lord. Similar to the constant care one need to have when maintaining flower beds in ones yard……sure, you can get by a couple of weeks without weeding, however eventually it will affect the appearance of your yard or in the spirit realm your witnessing for Christ. Suddenly it takes you twice as long to clean up/catch up, than just doing a little bit daily. Due to exhaustion, frustration, impatience or all of the above at some point we may look to cut corners to get the faster results. From afar the yard (aka our lives) looks good, but at close observations looks rough at untidy. The Lord is calling for all of us to take an assessment of our hearts and pluck out anything that is not beneficial to the advancement of the Kingdom. Will that mean that you have to be more attentive in your daily walk…yes! However, I promise you your life will never be the same.
Seeking Revelation:
Grab your notebook:
- Ask the Holy Spirit to identify what areas of your life are over run with weeds.
- Think back, how did things get into this state?
- Ask the Holy Spirit what you can do in these areas to better maintain your spiritual walk/witness.