Living in the Spirit
July 19, 2014

 Scripture Reading: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

 He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. — Matthew 13:24-26

When my parents sold the farm and moved to town they first lived in a nice house on a regular street with houses on all sides—too confining for my Dad who had always lived in the country. Driving around the town, he discovered a home for sale that backed up to a creek and included about two acres. It was his escape from being so boxed in; it was also a mess. It apparently was part of an estate that had taken some time to settle and nothing had been done regarding upkeep for several years. It was so overgrown that my parents had someone with a big tractor just mow everything down that could be cut with a mighty mower. What was left was a few scrawny bushes and some tall trees. That was in the late fall, the land laid in that state throughout the winter while my parents worked on the house. In the spring, my mother who loved being in the garden more than any place else on earth, watched as each sprig came forth from the earth. I will never forget that spring when I drove up the drive to see this beautify sweep of daffodils and irises lining the way. They had been there all along it just took a good gardener’s eyes to see them and to clear the clutter that had been choking them out. Oh, and those, scrawny bushes were actually roses that framed the other side of the drive and the tall trees produced native and paper shell pecans.

Our scripture today may be saying that only God can really discern what is a weed. Our job is to make sure that every one of God’s children has the opportunity to know God and to be nourished in God’s love through us. Who knows what looks like a weed to us might be a daffodil or an iris or a rose.

Prayer: Creator of the World and all that is in it, help us to see the potential of each of your children and to work toward helping us all reach our potential in your love. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.