And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love. Ephesians 3:17, NLT
The more I work in the yard the more I realize how little I know about yard work. We had a lawn care company come recently and “slit seed” our yard with a special blend of fescue. I have nurtured, nourished, and pampered the new grass seeds to help them grow deep roots. At least I think grass needs deep roots. I have tried to keep the ground and the seeds moist (and one time accidentally left the sprinkler on for 5+ hours). I also have worked to keep the leaves off the new seeds and grass since the instructions said they would hamper or prevent germination and/or growth.
Today I used an electric blower to remove the leaves so that I could water what has become a really green and pretty young lawn. As the fall came and the leaves changed into the beautiful yellow, brown and red symphony of autumn I realized that leaves and grass don’t mix. Sometimes things that appear so attractive can obstruct a positive thing, like autumn leaves that prevent grass seeds from germinating. And sometimes things like pine straw can be so good at preserving moisture around azalea bushes but can also cover grass and hamper pretty lawns.
Our Christian life is a little like that. Some things that seem so attractive can prevent our roots from going deep in the love of Jesus. And I am convinced that we all need deep roots in the love of God and His Son. Sometimes we must work hard to prevent the leaves and the pine straw of life from messing up our efforts to grow deep roots in God’s love. Our own selfish interests and our own sense of arrogant independence make us think we don’t need deep roots. But once we rake or blow the “leaves” off the grass of our lives, we can only then grow those deep roots.
I am so thankful that God let those leaves fall on my grass in October.
Leaves, Grass, and Pine Straw
By Bill Shipp
The more I work in the yard the more I realize how little I know about yard work. We had a lawn care company come recently and “slit seed” our yard with a special blend of fescue. I have nurtured, nourished, and pampered the new grass seeds to help them grow deep roots. At least I think grass needs deep roots. I have tried to keep the ground and the seeds moist (and one time accidentally left the sprinkler on for 5+ hours). I also have worked to keep the leaves off the new seeds and grass since the instructions said they would hamper or prevent germination and/or growth.
Today I used an electric blower to remove the leaves so that I could water what has become a really green and pretty young lawn. As the fall came and the leaves changed into the beautiful yellow, brown and red symphony of autumn I realized that leaves and grass don’t mix. Sometimes things that appear so attractive can obstruct a positive thing, like autumn leaves that prevent grass seeds from germinating. And sometimes things like pine straw can be so good at preserving moisture around azalea bushes but can also cover grass and hamper pretty lawns.
Our Christian life is a little like that. Some things that seem so attractive can prevent our roots from going deep in the love of Jesus. And I am convinced that we all need deep roots in the love of God and His Son. Sometimes we must work hard to prevent the leaves and the pine straw of life from messing up our efforts to grow deep roots in God’s love. Our own selfish interests and our own sense of arrogant independence make us think we don’t need deep roots. But once we rake or blow the “leaves” off the grass of our lives, we can only then grow those deep roots.
I am so thankful that God let those leaves fall on my grass in October.
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