Galatians 5: 1, 13-25
In this life, one of the greatest gifts and sometimes curses
we have been given is free will. God
never wanted to have emotionless, zombie followers. We were created to choose. It is the basic freedom of this life. This freedom comes with some parameters and requires
sacrifice and there are natural consequences for the choices we make.
As I was studying the scripture this week, it seemed fitting
for us to look at life as a garden. We
are each given a piece of land to care for and to plant whatever we
choose.
Some choose what may seem the easy way. The land lays barren and whatever seed
happens to land is allowed to grow or die.
There is no work required with this method. It may become a small
collection of wild flowers, it may just be a pile of dirt but most likely it
will quickly be over grown with weeds.
If anything healthy does happen to land there like an apple seed it is
quickly choked out by the briars and vines. The owner may pretend that the dandelions are
beautiful flowers but they have no control over them, they seed and sprout
where ever they choose, killing anything beneficial near them.
These are those who always want things to be better but
don’t want to do any of the work it requires.
They want an “I” centered life.
What I want, what I need, when I want it, and on my terms. They give in to temptations and Instead of
fruit; they grow vices- addiction, bickering, tearing others down, pessimism, gossiping,
jealousy, anger and hatred. When
positive things do happen they are quick to belittle the idea, attempt to choke
it out like kudzu using words like can’t, won’t, don’t ….. At the end of the day, while there may be a
sense of pride that one got their way- there is nothing left but an over grown
plot of ground, an emptiness- aching to be filled.
On the other hand…
Some choose to care for their plot of land. They carefully choose which plants they want;
trees that bear fruit, vegetables, herbs, and beneficial flowers. They choose to work their land diligently, planting,
fertilizing and nurturing the land with love and encouragement. When negative attitudes and weeds of life do
creep in they are quickly plucked out and removed before they can do damage. The gardener knows that it takes hard work,
time and persistence to care for the life they have been given but the reward
is great. At the end of the day there is
fruit: love, joy, peace, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, patience, self-control
and a spirit filled with Christ.
Instead of lists of cannot, will not, and do not; you will
hear words of how, we can try it, what’s next, and what can I do to help.
The life of the diligent gardener is not an easy one. Often we start out on the right track excited
and eager but as the summer heat moves in we begin to neglect what we started.
We put off caring for the land until another day but weeds take hold, often
before we realize it or we forget to water and fertilize the once beautiful
plants and they slowly wither and die It is not enough to just plant good seeds; it
is not enough to weed on occasion. It
takes persistence and ever watchful eye.
Our life of faith is so similar to this garden metaphor. What are the weeds in your life? What do you want to plant in your garden? Have you experienced a harvest in your life? What
kind of fruit have you witnessed in your life, in the life of this church?
Have you planted a
healthy garden but see the weeds creeping in?
Are you in desperate need of nutrients so that the fruit you see budding
can grow healthy?
You are in luck. This
book, the Bible, is the spiritual farmer’s almanac- maybe you think you read it
a long time ago and think you know everything in it- I promise there is
something new to be learned! Maybe you
are out of practice and need to ask for help or want to learn from how other
people have cared for their garden. Maybe
sharing and hearing new opinions, a new perspective will deepen your faith.
Maybe you can look back to your ancestors and learn lessons
from their lives or maybe you need to spend time with a new believer who is
still excited about how God is growing in their life, get excited again! Share the fruit of your life with others-
love someone you never thought was lovable, sow patience, kindness and
forgiveness. Use your gifts to encourage
others – we can never give it all away- the more we give the more we have to
give.
Maybe you feel like
you have too many weeds growing in your life and you feel like giving up. Don’t, there is always hope! Look around you- there are people all around willing
to help. You have a God who loves you
and wants to see an orchard in your life.
A God, who sent his son to this earth, to guide the way so that you
would never have to do this alone.
Spend time in worship, in prayer and meditation, sing hymns,
study the words of Christ, and learn from the lives (successes and failures) of
those around you. Weed out the people
who tear you down and belittle you. Add
people who are encouraging, supportive and loving. When you feel the words of
pessimism and doubt creeping in acknowledge them and weed them out too.
It is never too late to start fresh with Christ. Because of Christ we can take a deep breath,
repent and try again, each time learning something new and realizing that with
Christ we have unconditional love, forgiveness, and all the tools we will ever
need to grow healthy in the light of the Son into everlasting life.
Someone once told me you will have pain in your life- either
the pain of discipline now or the pain of regret later. It is your choice. This is the freedom we have been given. Christ is showing us the way. The Holy Spirit is guiding us to make healthy
choices- we just need to listen, follow and stay focused on what is important.
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