Weed Pulling

I know Jesus told a parable about weed seeds being planted midst freshly planted wheat seeds.  In the parable the master told his servants to let things be.  "Let both of them grow together until the harvest..." he told them.  (Matthew 13:30)  Around here it is a hard word to follow.  Around here one of the major tasks is pulling weeds.  When your grow a garden, or when you are watching blueberries filling out on the bush, or when the flowers start disappearing midst the unwanted green growth, pulling weeds seems like a natural and necessary thing to do. 

 

While it is true that weeds are as much a part of the creation as the blueberries, the weeds tend to diminish the vitality of the plants deemed by us as more desirable.  From the time I first was being sent to the butter bean patch, I was told that weeds take the nutrients out of the soil which the fruit producing plants could and would use.  In the garden battlefield where the weeds are battling the blueberries for the nurturing power of the soil, the weeds always seem to win so around here we pull weeds hoping to turn the tide.

 

It is a visible task which brings to mind an inner one in our spiritual life.  In our desire for spiritual health and wholeness there are many things which can take away and distract and diminish.  Our spiritual life is weakened by the presence of the negative things in our heart which hinder the Holy Spirit in producing fruit that resembles the heart of Jesus.  If we want our heart and spirit to be nurtured, it is always going to be necessary to do some weed pulling.  The Word of God often refers to the work as repentance and confession.  Like pulling weeds, it is hard work no one really wants to do, but it is an imperative for the soul that seeks after God.