Cockleburry Bouquets

Today I went cockleburry picking! Finally, after about a week, I got out on the farm for my 2-hour stint and discovered that we were headed down to the pasture in the lowlands to pick weeds. Yay! So we all found a good pair of sturdy gloves and headed, tools in tow, to yank, pull, and heave until we got those sorry suckers loose from the dirt they so tenaciously clung to. We bent our knees, four hands to a vine, and pulled with all our might until the roots sprang forth and we nearly tumbled backwards into prickles and pokes of friendly thistles. We dived amidst drying grasses, rooting around for the little plants, burrs sticking to our hair and grabbing tight to any part of our body they could reach. We crouched low, making sure we were at the base of thick stalks as we lopped the toughest ones right next to the ground. And with each bouquet of weeds that we tossed on an ever-growing pile, the thoughts shook loose into my mind.

I know weeds are compared most often to sin and it was interesting to try to come up with lessons from my experiences today. The team began the project yesterday, and while they thought they had gotten all the plants in one particular section of the field, upon closer inspection today they found more of the pesky things. Often, when you think you've gotten victory over a particular problem, you go back and realize there's just a few more parts of it you overlooked.

Then, only after we pulled the large weeds were we able to see the smaller ones hiding underneath. It's the same in life, the closer you get to Jesus, the more you start to see all the tiny problems that you know you have to work on. You think, "Well, that was a big issue, now I no longer have to deal with it and I can start working on perfection" but as soon as you try doing that, you realize how many tiny issues you have and realize it's a big task yet.

Last summer, Dr. J and some of her friends pulled a huge pile of weeds and left them to dry. This year, new plants grew up aplenty at that same spot, teaching us that it isn't enough to just leave them there to dry out, you have to burn them till all evidence is gone. Enough said.

And finally, my favourite lesson for the day: sometimes it isn't enough to have just one set of hands pulling a weed, sometimes it is too hard and you need a friend with that little bit of extra support and strength. In life, especially as Christians, we start to think that we can fix ourselves all by ourselves. Not only do we need Jesus, though, we also need fellowship with others and good Christian friends who can encourage us with strength and support when we are struggling with an issue. Often, with those four hands pulling hard enough, the weed comes right out, root and all!

A few thoughts to ponder from the garden of life. . .