Grace pulled her work gloves, grabbed a small shovel, clippers, and some leaf bags and headed toward her garden. Life had been so hectic lately. Weeding the garden had fallen low on the priority list, and now things were looking wild and out of control. How is it that weeds could grow so quickly and just take over everything? One by one, Grace pulled out the weeds that were choking her favorite flowers. In her head Grace chastised herself for letting things go so far. Of course she knew better, but lately she had been so overwhelmed with life, that she didn't take the time to enjoy her prized garden.
Three hours later Grace stepped back to appreciate all her hard work. "That looks a thousand times better," she thought to herself.
Just then a man walking on the trail behind her house said, "Wow, that sure is some garden! You really are quite gifted."
Grace smiled proudly. "Thank you. It definitely took some work, but it was worth it."
"When I saw all those weeds yesterday, I was afraid you didn't care anymore."
Grace just looked at the man for a minute. "What an odd thing to say," she thought to herself. She was so taken aback by his comment that she didn't know what to say.
"You know," the man said, "Weeds are a lot like bad habits. If you don't take care of them right away, they start to take over. You've done a great job with this garden, are you ready to do the same with your life?"
"What?" Grace said completely astonished. "I'm sorry, do I even know you?"
"Grace, everyday I walk by your house waiting for you to notice me again. I have missed you and I want to be a part of your life again."
Grace took a good look at the man. "Oh my gosh, how did I not recognize you?"
"You were allowing your faith to be choked out by a lot of distractions."
Grace suddenly saw her life choices very differently. Tears began to roll down her face. "I'm so sorry, God, I have made some poor choices. Is it too late for me to change? Did I mess everything up?"
"It's definitely not to late. You know, I'm a pretty good gardner myself. I happen to know a thing or two about planting seeds in fertile soil. Are your ready to do a little more weeding?"
Grace nodded yes. "Will you help me pull out some of the bigger weeds?"
God smiled and said, "Trust me child, I've got this under control."
-Susan
