We had a lot of weeds to tackle this week so we all put on our garden gloves, got our little shovels, and sat on our small mats. There are teachable moments around every corner. So as my gardeners little hands worked I decided that this was a great opportunity to share with them about God, weeds, worries, and sin.
Weeds are like worries. Now worry is having anxiety about something that might happen or will not happen. Your mind starts to torment you with cares and troubles. We can worry about presenting in front of others, meeting new people, or being able to fit in. We can also worry about what we will wear or what we will eat. But Jesus says, “Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the sky : they don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet their heavenly father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add a single cubit to his height by worring? And why do you worry about clothes? Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don’t labor or spin thread. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! If that’s how God clothes the grass of the fields, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much for you – you of little faith?” (Matthew 6: 25-30) Weeds are like worries because they can hinder us from producing good fruit. A small worry can lead to a larger worry and can take up space in our minds and our hearts. We in return have no time to trust in God. Weeds will give very little space for the plant near it to grow to its potential height. The more weeds there are around the plant the less likely it will produce fruit. This is because weeds take nutrients and water from a plant that is growing near it. Weeds also spread their stems and leaves out to get more sunlight and as a result the plant nearby will not get enough sunlight. Weeds tend to create a large number of seeds. Most of the time the flower of plant you planted produces less seeds. Invasive weeds increase wildfires. After a couple of years the weeds will grow back on that land because they adapt quickly to all sorts of environments which makes it harder for native plants to thrive. Some weeds even release toxic chemicals into the soil and this can harm other plants (this is known as allelopathy).
Weeds are like sin. Breaking the law or going against a principle or standard is considered a sin. God has given us the bible, an instruction manual on how we should live. Sin oftentimes leads to more sin. We can get to a point where we step back and think to ourselves, “How did we get this far?” If we don’t keep control of the weed or our sins then they can take over completely. It is important to get to the root of sin. Weeds are like sin because if you no longer want the weed to grow back you have to pull out the roots with the weeds. The more weeds you have growing in your yard the harder and the longer it takes to get rid of them. Even if you do pull out the weed you have to watch for signs of new weed growth and pull out the weed before it gets larger and multiplies. Just like with sin you always have to be on guard. The good news is that you can get rid of weeds and most importantly sin. In Romans 6:23 it says, “For wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. ” So lets confess our sins in front of God , ask for forgiveness from God, and lets sin no more.
Have fun using every opportunity to teach your child about God, life, and the world around them !
