So.
Here I am in Romania.
Let me just tell you that Romania is GORGEOUS.
It is one of the most picturesque places I have ever been.
Rolling hills, sheep in the plush, green meadows, awe-inducing sunrises, beautiful sunsets.
God's creation never ceases to amaze me.
Ministry here has been WORK!
I have been able to garden! WOO HOO!
I love it.
And it is just hilarious how many lessons God is teaching me from gardening.
I seriously do love it.
So yesterday, I was pulling up weeds. All day.
Just pulling weeds, grass, all the unnecessary things in a landscape.
It got me thinking about the gospel of Matthew and the parable Jesus tells of the weeds.
He told the story of an enemy spreading the seeds of weeds in a man's field unbeknownst to the farmer until they were growing with the grain.
One of his servants asked if he should uproot the weeds
and the farmer said no.
He did not want the wheat to be accidentally pulled up with the weeds.
He wanted them to grow together until harvest, when he would then pull up the weeds to burn and harvest the good wheat.
Apparently, the kind of weeds Jesus was speaking about look just like the wheat when it is young.
Only later can the weeds be distinguished from the wheat.
What an interesting picture of our walk with Christ.
The wheat, when young, looks like the weeds.
So we the wheat, while we are still young and immature in the faith, may look like the world for awhile, until we grow up a little bit.
In the same way, there are those who think themselves to be wheat when in reality, they are just young weeds, growing next to the wheat who will be found out as they too mature and grow.
Sometimes, in my past, I have confused myself.
I knew I was wheat but I looked like the weed standing next to me.
So, wait. Was I really wheat or was I just a weed masquerading as wheat?
It was not until I began understanding my true nature as a grain of wheat that I began to grow and actually see that I was wheat.
It was not until I began to understand my position and place in Christ that I could truly see and know the difference between myself and the weeds around me.
I was also thinking about the field being my heart.
Sometimes, weeds begin to grow without me realizing it until the thing becomes mature.
Then the thing has to be ripped out and burned away.
It hurts when that happens.
When I am not asking the Lord to come and search my heart, some pretty crappy stuff can begin to take root that should not be present at all.
Like, worry, anxiety, frustrations, distrust, lack of grace for others, etc.
You know. All the things that God never gives me.
All the things that try to steal what God gives me.
Like, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, grace, etc.
You know. All the goodness!
All the delicious fruit of the Spirit.
So basically, you should go do some gardening.
I promise that God will teach you some awesome things through it!
🙂
