GETTING READY FOR SPRING

Today I went outside to work in the yard. It has been nice for the last few days and I always promised myself that I would get outside and start on my work for spring. Each day that I made that promise, I didn’t follow through. Instead I stayed inside and worked on the laundry or did errands that needed to be finished. I realize that some of you are still covered with a blanket of snow or a layer of ice over the trees and branches but here the temperatures have been in the 60’s and 70’s. Later on in the summer we will boast of temperatures in the high 90’s and possibly into the 100’s. But for now we have the perfect spring weather. It’s a time for watching everything begin to bud and blossom. God will take his paintbrush and fill it with color—color that will cover almost every imaginable hue and shade.

Since spring is just around the corner, I decided to finally keep my promise. I headed into the back yard to move some zebra grass that had overgrown its boundaries. I loved the green and white colored blades and it was a nice way to camouflage areas that I wanted to hide. I had used it to cover the area near the air conditioner but it had grown so much that the grass was beginning to grow into the air conditioner. It simply had to be moved. Task for the day---dig out the zebra grass, move it to a new spot, and replant.

I headed out to the back yard with a shovel in hand. Later on I would return to the garage and get an axe and a wheelbarrow. I began to loosen the soil around the grass but quickly realized exactly how root bound the plant was. I put my shovel into the soil and found that it was easy to dig into but the more I tried to get under the plant, the more my shovel threatened to break near the area where the metal and handle meet. No way was a shovel going to do the work on its own. My trusty axe would make the job easier and cut through the roots quicker. Its sharp blade came to my rescue. I worked and worked and worked…and then I worked some more. I pulled so hard in some areas that I found myself sitting down on the ground. The shovel would not go through some areas of the plant and it took more than one whack of the axe to work through the heavy root system.

After almost an hour and a half I managed to get the heavy plant out of the original hole. Now all I had to do was replant it somewhere else. I had the spot already picked out. It was on the slope at the side of our house. Another frustrating half hour of trying to get the holes dug while trying to keep my balance without slipping down the slope. (Believe me, the next house we own is going to have a level back yard!) What an ordeal! I can say that at the end the score went something like this. Zebra grass—10 points: 6 points for each time that it refused to give way to my shovel or axe, 3 points for the frustration I had replanting it, and 1 point for falling out of my wheelbarrow. My score came out higher simply because I finished everything I set out to accomplish. I guess my point total would be 12---6 points for struggling to remove the plant from its original location, but successfully doing the job, 2 points for struggling to push the wheelbarrow around the corner of the house and actually making it, and 2 points for actually getting the plant in its new location. And additional point for overcoming my frustration without sounding off and 1 point for not allowing the axe to hit any body part. I probably should add another point or two for keeping my balance on the slope while trying to plant the zebra grass. But I can say with confidence that I did complete the job!

Last year my gardener came to work in my yard. We are very fortunate to have zoysia grass and it does not need mowing as much as regular grass. It means that the gardener usually comes out about once every four to six weeks. This gardener is probably one of the best in the area. I had watched him for over two years work in my neighbor’s yard. He was meticulous and always left the yard spotless and well groomed. He usually mows our grass and trims the area around the sidewalk and front curb. We’ve had a few incidents where the weed eater managed to chop off one of my flowers but nothing that really bothered me. On one particular visit he decided to trim one of our bushes. He came to me later and showed me what he had done. He seemed so satisfied with his work but the real truth is that bridal wreath is known for its large graceful branches that almost reach to the ground. This particular plant had been growing for about five years and had a good arched shape on it. I was disappointed to learn of the “haircut” but there was nothing I could do. It would take some time to get the shape back and the areas where the branches had been trimmed would become fuller so it wasn’t all in vain.

Last year my neighbor and I tried our hand at growing African violets. It had been quite a long time since I had indoor plants and the African violet was supposed to be easy to grow. Throughout the months we managed to kill some of the plants either due to neglect or over-watering. My neighbor lost all her plants; I still have two plants that I am rather proud of. I have tried to keep other plants in the house but I find that I am gone so much of the time that they eventually grow brown and die. I have learned to keep my plants near the kitchen window. If I see them then I am reminded to water and fertilize them. The old saying “Out of sight, out of mind” really applies here.

Jesus is the perfect gardener who knows exactly what we need in our life. John 15 tells the parable about a vine that grew in the area where Jesus was. “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit He takes away and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” (John 15:1,2). This verse came to my mind because it was a verse that I heard over and over during the years that I was either in Sunday School or at church. Also, the process of pruning and moving a plant to a new location and removing the dead branches is very much a part of gardening. I knew the parallel but it is never as vivid in my mind as in the early spring when everything comes to life.

Gardening has been a passion of mine for many years and it gives me joy to see the new plants send out their first shoots and then burst into bloom. Some plants thrive in my garden. Other plants are devoured by the deer and rabbits, and others just dry up due to periods of drought. The garden must be tended almost on a daily basis if you are to be successful. And sometimes when you take the most care and work hard to keep things growing, weeds surround the plant or the plant grows back in a place where it once stood. That’s what will happen to my zebra grass. No matter how hard I try to remove it, a few roots will survive and the grass will return. I will have to pull it out again or grab a handy bottle of Roundup and give it a zap or two.

God’s word tells us “without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Unless we allow God to prune away the weeds of sin we will not be able to fully thrive and blossom into the Christian that God truly wants us to be. Sometimes He has to prune away the dead part of our lives to open our eyes to new and better views. At other times the pruning is subtle and we hardly feel it. God is shaping us into a new creation so that we can become more like Him.

Our life needs to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”. His guiding hand will nurture us each step of the way if only we will let Him. While you tend your own yard this spring and summer, let God work in your life and remove away any dead branches that you have permitted to take over a part of your life. Then you can bloom even more and become a rare flower that blooms in His garden.