Father, thank You for helping me to get up and at it. My bed was so comfy but time with you will be much more beneficial! Open my ears that I might hear. Amen.
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I am by no means an avid gardener but I have done my fair share of yard work (and there is a bunch of it that needs to be done now!). I love flowers and have on occasion written of nature and how it can reflect our own actions. As it often happens, on one of my trips down the hall last night, Lord, I believe You “planted” a thought in my heart.

Just saying the word “dandelion” can generate a fair amount of responses – especially from those who enjoy green lawns in the spring and early summer. Beyond herbicides getting rid of them is very problematic.

We have a nice flower bed in front of our home. We have a bench, three nicely painted pavers, a bird bath amidst a cluster of beautiful holly bushes along with an array of beautiful perennials – mums, coneflowers, black-eyed susans, sedum, and, of course…dandelions!

No matter how many times I try to pull those little boogers up, they come back! And most of us know why. When we pull them out, inevitably there is part of the taproot, which can be up to 10 inches long, left in the soil. And any part of it left generates a whole new plant! It is a never-ending battle!

Do you see where this is going? What has the same impact on our spiritual lives? Sin. For all of humanity, sin is something which we must always be on the lookout to eliminate from our lives. Quite often we have those sins that seem to impact us in particular. We come to Christ seeking forgiveness and the sin in our lives is eradicated. Though our sin may be “cast into the depths of the sea” (Micah 7:19) our minds do not so readily forget them.

We have been forgiven through and through but our memories are the taproot. We may go for days and not be bothered by them, because we live in a world full of sin, something we see or hear stirs that memory and that “taproot” begins to regenerate.

First, keep James 1:13-15 in mind,

13 And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.

And then secondly, remember 1 Corinthians 10:13,

The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

We have the Master Gardener by our side – he never leaves or forsakes us (Deuteronomy 31:6). He is our Savior! Thanks be to God!

Oct 25th, 2018, Thurs, 6:48 am