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Spring has arrived and for us, that means it is garden time! Anyone else already getting their hands dirty with soil, dreaming of the beauty to come, and looking forward to eating the fruits of your labor? We are so ready at our house!

As we were cleaning out the beds and mulching the soil, we found a few subtle weeds in the corner. We had our little garden shovel, so we quickly dug the first one up. As we went to dig out the next one, it was obvious the small garden shovel would not be enough. We had to get the ditch digger shovel! Although the weed was barely peeking through the surface, we found it had a large root ball underneath. It took time, sweat, and that big shovel to dig it out.

It was frustrating for both of us because we were not expecting such a big weed. It also lifted out a lot of the good soil with it when it was dug up, and it took extra time when we wanted to plant!

As I was working through my annoyance with this weed, Hebrews 12:15 came to mind. It says, “Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.”  The message says it like this, “A thistle or two gone to seed can ruin a whole garden in no time.”

That was sobering. Here we were digging out difficult weeds in the garden, yet I realized I had allowed bitterness to go undiagnosed in my own heart and I was now faced with the realization of the cost. I recognized that I had not only allowed it to affect me, but those around me, especially my family. The weight of my choice to hang onto hurts and not bring them to the Lord to uproot, while they were still tiny little shoots, hit me hard.  Right there in my little garden, God spoke to me, and I had a choice. I tried to justify to Him the pain that I had been in, through the choices of others. Yet, He reminded me that I could leave the pain with Him, turn away from the bitterness it had caused, and start over and allow Him to plant new things. It would take some time, effort, and a lot of choices to stay focused on the uprooting, but I made the decision to allow His shovel to begin removing it.

It will take time but asking Him to remove  that root has not only produced freedom and joy in my heart, but it has allowed space for His plants to grow! It is not always easy, and it is taking blood, sweat, and tears, but the result is worth it. The bitter root had caused trouble for me, as well as others close to me.

Doing things His way is always best. I ‘know’ that, yet I did not live it. Hmmm….when will I learn?!!!

“Lord, remind us that doing life your way is always best. Help us to be humble and allow you to weed our gardens as needed.”

For His Glory

Terrie Tollerson
TRBC Women’s Life