In gardening, some of the worst weeds to fight are those woody-stemmed, prickly nuisances called briars.
If we dig them out, one small bit of root left intact will fester underground until it gains enough renewed life to shoot forth, irritating us once again.
Poison? Spray all day, and the parts of the briar we can see will die back, but it seems we cannot kill out the root.
Clear a wooded property to build a new house, and we are likely to fight the briars for years to come. Once a briar patch becomes established, it will choke out everything else that springs up in its midst.
The briars of everyday life are the same way. No Christian wants old briars to spring up and choke our walk with Jesus. However, just as with the woody plant found in our gardens, even when we think we have our problems routed from our soil, deep down where we cannot see, a remnant can fester, gaining strength, until it is ready to wrap its sticky tendrils around us and trap us in a briar patch of problems and cares.
Our only solution is to seek Jesus, the master gardener, the only one who can eradicate our briars for good.
Acts 17:27 tells those of us choked by life to seek God, for he is not far from us.
Jeremiah 29:13 encourages us to seek him with all our heart, for we will find him.
Matthew 7:8 says that all we have to do is ask, and we will receive; if we seek, we shall find; and if we knock, it will be opened unto us.
Proverbs 8:17 gives us the assurance that he loves us, and if we diligently seek him, we will find him.
Deuteronomy 4:29 assures us that we will find our God if we search after him with all our heart and all our soul.
The cares of life are unpleasant to deal with. It is worse when we look at our garden to find old briars have sprung up once again. We must tend to them regularly, or they will overtake us. It is only with the help of Jesus that we can ensure they are completely gone, root and all.
Jesus is the master gardener, and he is the one who knows how to keep our landscape weed free.
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Code: FGO.E.04.14.vp
Originally Published: 6-25-14 in Hope