So in my last days in Moldova I had the opportunity to do
some gardening. I am not usually one for weeding but this garden was very
overgrown and the day was made for it….the sun was shining warming your back
and there was a cool fall breeze just to make sure you didn’t overheat. As I
began I just prayed and asked God to meet me in the garden. I turned on my
worship playlist and away I went!
and tenderly to me. I felt as if it was only Him and I in the garden that day.
There was a bubble around me and I only could feel His presence. We talked
about many things but I thought I share just a few with you. A few things that He
showed me were that
(1)
I was too focused on the big picture and didn’t
want to get too dirty. I at first looked at the garden and got my game plan, “I
will pick all the dead peppers throughout the garden to give it a fresh and
clean look.” This way I wouldn’t get too much dirt under my nails and this way
it appeared much nicer to those who
walk by. Whoa! Smack! God was so right! This is also true about my life. Let me
work on just enough so that I look nice to those around me and have a beautiful
appearance but I’m not sure I’m ready to dig deeper and show my dirty hands to
other people.
So I began to think deeper into that and began to just focus
on a plot of land and began to focus on weeding everything, dirt under my nails
and all. And He continued to speak showing me that
(2) (2) weeds can look as if they belong in the garden.
Some are wrapped around the plants and some are hiding underneath the plants
trying to go unnoticed. He spoke to me saying this is true in my life as well.
On first glance I look “okay.” I live a moral Christian life, I am seeking
after Him and I’m harvesting fruit (or vegetables if we stick with this garden)
but as I dig deeper and spend more time in the garden of my life I notice (or
God reveals to me) weeds that are wrapped around me and trying to hide.
God has cleared the dead peppers and He is inviting me into
a season of weeding. He is asking me to trust Him with my heart and to go to
deep pains, hurts, and lies, and begin to weed them out. As I shared my
hesitancy and eagerness with him He continued to speak helping me see that
(3) (3) as you spend more time weeding you begin to
recognize the weeds very quickly.
You are able to see the plants, leaves, and
flowers that don’t belong and you begin to
just weed naturally. This is what He
is asking of me. God was asking me to enter into
a season of intimacy with Him
and spend time with Him in His garden (in His word and
presence).
He was speaking and showing me that as I spend more time
with Him I will begin to see the truth and spiritual world more clearly. I will
begin to use my eyes to see the heavenly rather than the earthly. I will learn
to think in the heavenly rather than the earthly. I will recognize Him and His
truth rather than what I have known or thought for years. It was time to weed
out the lifelong habitual patterns I have had. It was time to weed out the fear
and rejection that I often operate out of. It was time to bring DEEP rooted
health into my life and that it was going to be learning experience. The weeds
need to first be revealed to me, then the weeding and dirty fingers, but as I
weed the beauty and life can be seen much more clearly. It’s time for my LIFE
to radiate and shine and in order to get there some weeding most begin…..
So what season are you in?
Are you making yourself available
for God to clean your garden? Is it time to pick out the dead plants? Or is it
time to weed out the lifelong habitual weeds that have grown? Spend some time
with the Master Gardner today and ask…..
