Pretty Little Flower Weeds

Since Spring has sprung on our little neighborhood of Berkley, the sights and sounds of lawnmowers and landscaping have once again permeated the neighborhood.  It's fun to see people outside again.  I so admire the people who have their lawns looking so well-manicured, colorful, and pretty.  I confess, however, I do not enjoy this same passion.

I don't really like to dig around in the dirt.  It's not the dirtiness I mind as much as the bugs.  I really don't like the worms and bugs.

And then there's this whole thing of weeding.  I hate weeding.  It never goes away.  No matter how many times I pull up those stinkin' weeds, they always come back.  Very quickly, might I add.

And the ones that REALLY get me are the ones that I call "ninja weeds."  They are the weeds that sneak up on you because they don't really look like weeds.  They disguise themselves as pretty, little flowers.  We had a large patch of pretty, little purple flowers in our front lawn this year which I thought were just delightful.  Then, I was told that they were actually weeds and that they had to go!  Imagine, the sneakiness of those weeds!  Pretending to be flowers and all the while they are just waiting to pounce upon the healthy growth of our grass.

It made me think twice about the various "gardening habits" that I cultivate in my own life.  When I go through life day to day, experiencing various circumstances and interactions with people, attitudes and thinking patterns naturally will begin to grow in my heart.  

Sometimes, these are obviously beautiful, healthy flowers.  Time spent with a trusted friend builds encouragement, love, and delight in my heart and adds "fertilizer" to the growth that may have already been there.

Other times, they are obviously weeds.  When I spend my time watching shows with unhealthy images, or around people that bring out negative behaviors in me, weeds like gossip or deceit or self-indulgence can be fertilized, thereby choking out the healthy growth of the aforementioned "flowers."  These weeds need to be picked and thrown out quite regularly.

The ones of which I've become more aware, however, are the "pretty little flower weeds" that can tend to grow in my heart.  These aren't obviously "bad," but when I begin to analyze the growth that comes from them, I see they don't really produce flowers at all.  

For example, I can indulge in romantic comedies or romance novels, and if I'm not careful, I can begin to compare my life, my marriage, my home, or any number of other things to a fantasy ideal that doesn't even exist.  And the "pretty, little flower weeds" of discontent and anxiety begin to spring up.  While these things may not be inherently "bad" or cause this sort of growth all the time, I've become aware of the need to be proactive about noticing what these sorts of things can do to my heart and be just as vigilant about pulling the "ninja weeds" as I am the obvious ones.

God, through the Holy Spirit, is the master Gardener of my heart and I need to look to Him for the guidance on a daily basis.  Through His grace, I will be able to enjoy the rewards of the "pretty, little flowers" in my garden, without having to be tricked by the weeds.