It was a simple, straightforward plan, but between the weeding and the manuring steps, I was in an unavoidable car accident (I’m okay but sore). And then I got sick. It’s been a delightful few weeks! However, this morning, I decided the time had come to finish pruning the perennial herbs and continue with the “readying the garden for a nap” project.

Poets wax eloquent when they speak about gardens and plants. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Earth laughs in flowers.” What a lovely, evocative description. But when I visited my garden this morning, it was most disheartening to see what had become of my earlier efforts. I think the Earth had a bad cough and spewed weeds. The space that had been pristine now held a convention of opportunistic plants that had gathered to encourage each other to reach their full potential. That’s what happens when you leave a garden empty and untended.

As I dug and pulled the unwanted invaders, my mind turned to the spiritual realm, and I wondered if our lives were like my garden. It takes constant vigilance to maintain our faith. As we read the Bible and apply its lessons, we root out the weeds that might take advantage of the space we otherwise leave open. Things like attitudes that aren’t honouring to God can creep in and flourish unchecked when we aren’t paying attention. Discouragement can easily settle upon us when we’re not focusing our minds on the good things from God.

The most persistent weed I struggle with that threatens to overrun my life, and that saps my energy is busyness. I’m in a season of life where my busyness has unavoidably increased. I am making strides in the “good enough” realm, but occasionally, I allow the urgent to take precedence over the important. Seeing busyness as a weed in the garden of life has never before entered my consciousness, but that realization has been a wake-up call.

What about you? What weeds threaten to invade your life when you coast or neglect your spiritual life? Gardens, like living quarters, don’t magically stay looking like they are ready for the pages of Home and Garden Magazine. Spiritual growth also requires sustained effort because it doesn’t happen by chance.

My garden now awaits its manure spa treatment, but this time I’m ready. However, yanking out the weeds the first time wasn’t a wasted effort. God used that experience to give me insight into a deeper principle. Isn’t it lovely that you can ponder it without getting dirty fingernails? You’re welcome.