Weeds...

Matthew 13:25
New King James Version (NKJV)
25 but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way.

We have a small rock garden in the front of our house. There are a few plants in there too. For weeks I have watched this ivy-looking weed just strangle the heck out of this one particular bush by our front door. Well not anymore, today was the day! I finally took some action. I put on some of those latex medical gloves (because I'm not a gardener and I don't have the proper gardening gloves) and I went to town pulling this never ending weed off of the bush. It obviously had some spiritual significance for me today, as I too am allowing God to pull some weeds from my spiritual garden. I've been experiencing a season of worry which has been causing feelings of anxiety to come over me as of late and I have a tendency to isolate myself when I'm stressed out. Do you ever have those nights where you just can't imagine that the morning will ever come? The nights seem so long when you can't sleep and you are thinking about how you are going to fix all of your life's problems. If I am unable to sleep, I've learned to stop trying and instead, I just go out on the couch and try to get comfortable in my little "corner of the world" but nothing has been soothing me lately. I had become overly preoccupied mentally. I have been unable to stop the "thought freight train" from running me over. The thoughts just kept coming full steam ahead. I wanted to fix everything and everyone that I was worrying about but I can't. Once again, I have been brought back to the realization that I'm just a person who needs Jesus, A LOT. I can't live without Him. I have realized that the peace He blesses me with is like a drug. I run to Him to soothe my pain. Sometimes the pain still remains, but in His timing, He comforts me and I am able to get through my struggles. The weeds of doubt and/or lack of trust may creep in at times but only He is able to pull these weeds from my garden. I have to allow Him to do this work in me. The bush has finally been freed and so has my spirit. It's a process. We have an enemy who wants to destroy us and our families but more importantly, we have a Savior that already took care of defeating him on the cross through His death and resurrection. The ivy-looking weed in our rock garden may reappear again one day soon and so may some of my spiritual weeds, so I will have to continue to tend both gardens. I can sleep again. I'm glad the weeds are gone, for the time being anyway....

Luke 4:13
New King James Version (NKJV)
13 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.