Waging War With Weeds Part 2: Warnings

So we know what we can learn from the good examples weeds can give us. Y'all must have thought that I was a little off when I wrote about all the GOOD things I think about weeds. Well now y'all can read about what y'all have been waiting for: all of the BAD things I have to say about weeds. I mentioned how much I hate them; how I hate that they always come creeping back into my life no matter how hard I try to eradicate them. I hate how they look and cut and slice when you touch them - they aren't very soft or inviting plants. I hate how they have this uncanny ability to grow in the most hard to mow places. I hate them. Period. So let me discuss the things that I have learned from them that are to be considered warnings.

NOTE: In this post, let us consider weeds as sins, temptations, vices, and addictions. Let us consider mowing comparable to the process of repentance.

Warning #1: Don't let them get out of hand. Eradicate and annihilate them as soon as you see them. Don't put things off. A little while ago, because of a busy day, I was unable to mow the lawn. The lawn was left un-mowed for an additional week. The day that I chose to skip mowing, I looked out to make sure it wasn't so bad that I was truly required to mow. I said to myself, "The lawn doesn't look so bad. There are only a few weeds growing around the edges. No worries. Next week I got it taken care of." How wrong I was. In that extra week more weeds grew than at any other time previous. When I returned for my routine mowing, the task was immensely daunting. I had let them go crazy on their own.
Now apply this principle to our sins. When we put off repenting of them, they grow out of hand almost without us noticing by the time we have "appointed" for our repentance process. They come back stronger than we thought. We underestimate them, and they threaten overrunning everything. They add up. We are left with the problem of all those sins and mistakes and errors to fix. Don't let that happen to YOU. When there is something in your life that needs repenting of, take care of it immediately.

Warning #2: Last post I mentioned how deeply they plant their roots and how that can be a desirable trait in our own lives. Conversely, it can be a bad thing. The roots of our sins and mistakes must be removed completely if we are to rid ourselves of the problem. Dig deep. Pull them out all the way and don't spare an inch, lest they grow back just as badly. Repent completely and fully so as to unburden yourself of all regret, shame, guilt, and fault. Why not be free? Why not be whole? Why not be liberated of your sins? Exactly. Dumb questions right? Then why don't we pull out the entire root sometimes? I say we should. Every time we repent we should do so fully and thereby enjoy the fullest measure of joy that comes from being healed through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

Warning #3: Keep trying, and rely on the Great Gardener. Keep cutting down the weeds. Keep repenting. True repentance is a daily process. Don't give up because it seems hard. Turn to your greatest source of help and strength in the face of so many weeds and sins. Turn to Christ. Let Him help you cut them down. Let Christ work through you in order to remove all of the weeds completely. It is only through Him that it is possible. We can't do it alone, and we can't stop trying. Never give up in the War on Weeds, because Christ never gave up on you.

So there you have it. A few Do's and Don't's, Good's and Bad's, that we can learn from weeds. All of it relevant to our spiritual well being. All of it meant to help us in our journey here on this Earth back to our Heavenly Father. I know these little lessons didn't pop into my head by accident. They have taught me so much and helped me immensely in the past couple of weeks. I understand so much more now about the repentance process, and enduring to the end faithfully. My thoughts have been turned to my Savior, and I am so grateful for that. I invite you to ponder these things, and to take them even further. If there is something spiritual you have learned from weeds lately, I invite you to apply it to your life. Turn to Christ. Turn to that Great Gardener who stands ready to receive you. Such is my prayer, in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.