lifewithomg

Bear with me . I love telling a good story, and I promise, there is a point. Now, it was your typical day. The sun wasn’t shining, and it was raining on and off all day. As I pulled in my driveway, I was admiring how my wonderful father had once again done his magic and mowed the grass. As I got closer, I noticed the ugliest, multicolored weed with sharp leaves sticking out of the perfect lawn! My daddy is a HARD worker, so I said, “Not today!” and immediately took action…

(It’s called a thistle. I googled it.)

I like gardening. I don’t know a lot about it, but it’s common knowledge that if you want something to completely disappear, then you have to pull it out with the roots in tow. I walked over there (with more confidence than needed) and started to kick it with the heel of my boot. I got the leaves off, but realized it wasn’t what I signed up for when I saw I would have to ruin his yard to get it completely out. I needed a shovel.

I couldn’t find a shovel, and if I’ve learned anything from my childhood it’s that improvising is the next best thing. Y’all, I found a pickaxe. I walked over there like a miner about to find some treasure and hit the dirt next to it, just as my neighbors were coming home from work. Perfect timing! I got down there and after a few minutes was finally able to pull it out. The best part? When I rose up and looked down at my muddy hands, I heard God say, “Now you know what it’s like to eliminate something sinful in your life that had no right being there!”

Getting rid of something sinful in life is like my little gardening experience. You could have the perfect life. On the outside, everyone knows you as the kind, caring, courageous type. On the inside, you’re dying. No matter how many showers you take, you can’t shake that feeling of dirtiness as the black tar inside of you starts to slowly boil and take over your body. No one knows, and why would they? If you told them, they’d just recommend you get over it privately and hope for the best. No one understands. No one that is, except your Creator.

He sees that nasty weed inside of you. You may have tried to tackle it on your own, but it always has roots. Sometimes it has thorns, so taking the easy way out isn’t an option either. No, you need a pickaxe. You need a Savior who can come in and pull you out of that mud with all of His power and might. It’s going to be messy. There will be trials. You may get hurt, there could be some “nosy neighbors” who question your methods, and you might even lose a few friends, but the end result is worth it all. Then you’ll need pesticides, because making sure that weed never comes back is crucial. That’s the Bible. Staying in God’s word ensures that you will never have another infestation like that again. 

I have had a few weeds in my lifetime. In fact, I’m currently uprooting a very pesky one now (I’ll save that story for another rainy day). It doesn’t matter if you’re addicted to drugs, love watching pornography, or stealing tomatoes from Hyvee. Sin is still sin. And just like a weed, it will kill everything in it’s path until it consumes you. 

When you feel like a balloon with no air, fix your eyes on Jesus. I know it’s hard. But take comfort in knowing that God would never put you in a situation that you couldn’t handle. Never give up. Trust God, always.

Forever His,

OMG

(DISCLAIMER: I’m sorry if I tricked you into thinking that I actually discovered a drug on my property. We don’t have any weed.)