Spritual Landscape

Planned communities are chock full of master gardeners whose joy abounds as spring brings their craft and showmanship into view for the rest of us. One quick spin around the neighborhood and the sights and smells of gardening beckon a quick trip to the local nursery or, at the very least, into the bookstore to grab the magazine highlighting "10 Quick Things To Do Now For a Fabulous Yard".

And I live in such a community.

I subject my friend LeAnne to many conversations about flowers, shrubs and grass tending as we power walk through my neighborhood. I admire the handiwork of those around me tremendously as somewhere deep inside of me screams, "I want my yard to look like that!" Hanging my head I confess I am without the honorable green thumb of so many other residents.

Alas, my laments pour out upon LeAnne's not-so-into-yard-stuff ears as I struggle to find ways to keep out of the "written notice for bad yard maintence" bin of the homeowner association police.

Continuing to stroll, LeAnne tells me about a guy in her neighborhood who gets down on his knees to get the weeds out of the grass in his front yard. We laugh a little at the intensity of his approach. Pretty meticulous. Yard worshipper, perhaps. He voraciously attacks the arch enemy, Weed, allowing the much tended Lawn to display purity and beauty.

And, then I got to thinking...

Our spiritual landscape requires much of the same approach.

Getting on our hands and knees

brings us into extreme close proximity

to the very things we must root out

if
we desire

our hearts to be
pure
spiritual landscapes.
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What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed. As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it. Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn't put down roots, so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly. Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled by the weeds. Some fell on good earth, and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants.

Matthew 13:3-8 MSG