What a blessing to be experiencing the rain that has been so plentiful this April.  As the old saying goes, “April showers bring May flowers.”  It once was the norm for spring in Oklahoma, but as of late things have changed.  Drought has been prevalent in many parts of Oklahoma and Texas, leaving the land unprotected from sparks that set off grass fires and consume miles of the natural habitat of the two states.

 

Drought can also be a condition of our spiritual life as well.  Our spiritual lives must be tended just like a garden of vegetables or flowers.  Just as there are times when water is an issue and we must help Mother Nature by hand-watering our gardens, our spiritual lives need moisture as well.  We need to bring ourselves to worship on Sunday mornings to fill our hearts with scripture, prayer, and the encouragement of other Christ-followers to keep us from becoming like a dried out and cracked piece of ground.

 

There is also the issue of weeds that must be pulled so they don’t overtake the growth we want to see in our gardens.  The weeds that crop up in our spiritual lives often resemble things like gossip, coarse talk, lying, pride, and even the plotting of revenge.  What do we do with weeds like these?  We come to worship, Sunday school, Bible study, and Covenant Group to hear the Word that directs us to not look at the way others live their lives, but the way we live ours.  When we see the tip of a weed begin to raise its ugly head, we can grab hold and pull it out.  If we are looking, we can see those things that are on the rise and take care of them by saying to ourselves, “These are not becoming in a Christian’s life, and I’ll turn the other way.”  It’s not always easy, but with practice we can see the beauty of our spiritual life begin to grow in ways that are unimaginable.  Compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience will take the place of the old things that have been weeded out, and our lives will become led by the love of God.