How the Grass Grows

By Melinda Clements

        With the recent rains in the desert southwest the weeds have suddenly just taken hold of our yards, gardens, and pastures.  In some places they are, indeed, waist high which in many ways is certainly a problem. 

        As the spring days have warmed up the weeds have especially become an issue in my yard.  Not only are they unsightly and make it look like no one lives here they pose a certain danger in that rattlesnakes start moving around as the days warm up and if you can’t see them and they don’t buzz it can be a very serious situation.

        Therefore, my whole crew began the tedious task of cutting weeds and trying to clear out and find our yard located somewhere beneath the new growth.  In our part of the country one never gripes or complains about the rain even if it brings an onslaught of weeds because rain is such a rare thing and certainly a precious commodity in the part of the country where we live.

        Once the mowing began and the weeds came down I was so surprised and pleasantly amazed that underneath the tall overpowering weed growth in my yard laid a spread of grass that was beginning to green up and sprout with the warmth of the spring days.  The weeds had kept it hidden and kept it from the sun.  They had not, however, been able to prevent it from receiving the moisture from the rains we’d had. 

        The neat thing, to me, was that within one or two days after the tall weeds had come down the grass just seemed to really take hold and come forth with a sudden growth; so much so that within less than a week we had to mow again.  This time it was grass and not weeds.

        I couldn’t help but think about just how much we, as God’s children, are like the hidden grass.  There is just so much heavy-duty stuff in our lives “weeds” that it hides the beauty of who we really are in God’s eyes.  And once we let God take hold of those weeds and let him mow them down then we, too, can grow and blossom like he wants us too.

        When weeds are overshadowing us and taller than we are they shut out the sun and the nurturing that we need to grow.  True, the living water always filters down to us despite the tall growth but until we rid ourselves of the weeds in our lives we cannot grow and blossom like we truly need too. 

        It takes God chopping away at the weeds and garbage in our lives so his loving light can shine on us and warm us so we can spread and grow.  As long as the weeds are in the way we are overshadowed by the tall inhibiting growth and our little sprouts can only just survive as we wait for the Master Gardener to clear the weeds so we can truly see his light and feel the warmth of his love on our leaves.

        As we mowed again this week I noticed how thick the grass is getting and how it is spreading, even out to areas where there wasn’t much grass at all.  The rain helped to do that and the ground is moist and wet underneath.  It is such a treasure, by the way, especially here in West Texas.  It is that way in our lives also.  Once the weeds are out of the way we, too, can spread and grow and bring this growth to other areas, i.e. other people that God needs us to share and witness to about his love.

        All of this comes together because someone took the time to mow down our weeds someone that loves us more than we will ever know or understand.  It is that someone who nurtures us and feeds us, keeps the weeds at bay…all so we can grow, blossom, and spread His love to areas where it has never been before.

        Does the rain bless us?  Of course.  Are the weeds in our backyards a hassle?  Truly they are, however, we all have weeds at some time or another.  You have to take the good along with the bad.  The good thing here is that we all have a Master Gardener who is pruning, mowing, shaping, fertilizing, and nurturing. 

        Rise up to the Master Gardener and let him mow down your weeds. It will help you grow and blossom.  Remember, He loves you and because He loves you he wants to clean out the weeds and give you a chance to grow and bloom.  There is no explaining a love like that.  When your weeds come down look into his face and know that He loves you and wants you to be the best you can be.  That is why He takes the time to mow.

(C) Melinda Clements March 2005 / melinda@clements.net