THOSE PESKY WEEDS!

I love gardening. It's hard work and I can't always find the time to do it, but whenever I can I take the opportunity with both hands, literally :-). It's a small garden, not much at all, but whenever I'm out there I'm in my own little world.

I love the earthy smell of soil and even though I'm no green goddess, I dare say my plants generally turn out well. I can think uninterrupted, sort things out in my head without any distractions.

The only sticking point is the weeds! Those annoying things that can quickly take over if left unchecked.  The other day during one of my weeding sessions, and while muttering irritably under my breath, I realized that weeds in the garden can be likened to the irritants (major and minor), that we all face everyday.

- They can over-run your garden if not seen to.

- They do not need much to grow and can survive in the most adverse conditions, whereas a much-desired plant could wilt and die even with the best care, if planted in the wrong soil.

- Some have such deep roots and are so tenacious that even if a little piece of root is left behind when pulling them up, they can quickly re-establish themselves!

- Their seeds are easily carried by the wind and are generously distributed far and wide. I am yet to see a rose or hibiscus garden spring up in this manner.

I could go on and on! Think about the effort it takes to keep a marriage going, a friendship, a career, a church or ministry. Look how tough it is to raise well-rounded children. How easy it is for them to pick up wrong attitudes and habits, and how hard it is to get rid of them and keep these kids on the straight and narrow!

A great friendship or even marriage can be ruined just through negligence. Doing infrequently what used to be done regularly in the early days of the relationship. Taking each other for granted and ignoring the needful.

A powerful ministry can be brought crashing down when the servant of God becomes too comfortable with the anointing and is deluded into believing he is untouchable and infallible.

The bottom-line is, just like a garden, our significant relationships and under-takings also need frequent and regular attention to nip situations in the bud and prevent 'weeds' from taking root and over-running our patch.

"Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom." (Songs of Solomon 2:15).