Ah, Spring! That glorious season when the sun warms, temperatures steadily increase, trees begin to come alive again, birds sing their happy songs, the grass begins to regain it’s color, and a menagerie of ground vegetation emerges and blossoms from the shadows of winter. Ah, Spring! How lovely it is to have you back with us. But along with all of these joyful experiences of this season, a frightful and disturbing life form develops…
Yes, I’m talking about weeds. A common occurrence in lawns and gardens, the weed is mostly seen as unwanted and a nuisance. By definition, a weed is often stated as being “a plant in the wrong place.” Weeds are very competitive in nature, fighting your plants and lawn for water, sun, nutrients and even space. While most weeds thrive in favorable conditions, most native types may be found growing nearly anywhere the ground has been disturbed. Disturbing, indeed. In order for our plants and grass to grow in the most optimum conditions and to fully develop, we need to eliminate the weeds in our gardens and lawns by either physically removing them or spraying chemicals to stop them from spreading. It often seems like a never-ending battle.
Our lives are very similar. Each one of us is battling with our own weeds each and every day. And these weeds can take many forms: greed, jealousy, envy, anger, hatred, discrimination, and on and on. These weeds are crowding out the full life that we need to be living. These weeds often push us into the wrong place, creating conflict between our mind and heart. These weeds fight within us and keep us from being our true self – an individual made in the image and likeness of God. A person created out of love for love.
We must find a way to eliminate these destructive and fast-spreading weeds in our lives. We need to allow ourselves to be fertilized and cultivated by the Word of God so that we can spread the love that God has for us to others. We need to find a way to destroy the weeds that can ultimately destroy us. Spring is the perfect time for us to take control of our inner selves once again. With all of the rebirth that is happening around us, let us focus on renewing our own lives and living the way that we need to be living: by praising our heavenly Father, loving and serving one another in His name, and keeping ourselves weed-free to order to live a holy and spiritual life.
