The Tale Of The Lawn

When walking around most neighborhoods, you can see a number of lawns that are very nice.  They have been mowed down to a couple inches and if they have been watered at all they will be a nice shade of green.  The fact is, from a distance, almost everyone’s lawn seems to be nice. However, upon closer inspection that is not always the case.  One sure-fire way to tell if a lawn is nice is to let it grow out a little.  By this I mean let it grow about 4 inches high.  Then you can see for yourself what kind of lawn it is.

I know that my lawn is not perfect.  I don’t pick up the clippings.  And I don’t always water it as well as I should.  I like to leave that job to God.  (Sometimes, however, it seems that He forgets because my yard starts to turn brown.  Then I have to water it.)  This past year, after a very wet Spring which required a high number of mowings, we’ve had a pretty dry summer.  So I decided to take advantage of this by taking a moratorium from mowing the lawn.  Let the grass grow a little bit.  With the dry weather it won’t hurt anything.  In fact, in this heat the lawn should be kept a little higher.  It makes for a healthier lawn.  And less mowing. Unfortunately when grass is allowed to grow it reveals things that you may not be prepared to see.

In my lawn’s case, there were weeds nestled in among the grass.  As long as I kept the grass cut, the lawn looked fine.  To the untrained eye.  Once I let the lawn grow weeds began to surface.  In some cases they towered above the grass.  Talk about unsightly.  As I looked over my lawn I was amazed at just how prevalent the weeds were.  There are a lot of weeds in my yard.  Prickers.  Dandelions.  Some kind of viny-type weed.  It’s not pretty.  In fact, it’s rather discouraging.  The proof is right there before my eyes.  My yard is half weeds and now that I’ve let it go some, everyone can see it.  One look at my yard and people shake their heads.  ‘Wow, he’s no gardener.  His lawn looks terrible.  What does he do with all his time?  I’ll bet the inside of his house looks even worse!’  I knew things were bad when people walked by on the other side of the street.  I’ve been discovered.  My lawn is an imposter.  And the proof is right there for everyone to see!

I see a spiritual lesson in my lawn.  You see, from a distance, there doesn’t seem to be much difference between most Christians.  They go to church.  They say grace in public before they eat.  They don’t smoke or come home drunk.  Like a lawn that has been cut close, they all appear to be the same.  But upon closer inspection, things come into focus.  Some Christians pay attention to their spiritual life and others don’t.   Some Christians have a healthy devotional life.  They read the Bible.  And pray.  They make church a priority.  They live under the Holy Spirit’s control.  While not sinless, their lives are marked by integrity.  And character.  And love.

Then there are other Christians.  They are like the homeowner who’s lawn is not so healthy.  They sort of let their spiritual life go.  Weeks or months without reading the Bible.  Spotty church attendance.  A love of money.  Or work.  Or leisure.  All of a sudden, various sins begin to crop up in their lives.  Flipping a driver off.  An angry outburst.  A swear word or two.  Talking about others behind their back.  It’s not a pretty sight.  Others begin to notice.  And talk.  ‘I thought ______ was a Christian?  I’m surprised.  I expected better from them.  If that’s being a Christian, I’m glad that I’m not one.’  Wow.  That really hurts.  Hopefully it hurts.  The lesson is that it's easy to impress people from a distance.  But the closer they get to us the more clearly they see us for who we are.  This can be good.  Or it can be bad.

So, what are people seeing in your life these days?  Do they see a well-maintained, attractive, vibrant relationship with God?  Or a neglected, unattractive, stale relationship with God?  I hope it’s the former. 

Matthew 7:16 - "By their fruit you will recognize them."

Lord, I thank you for the spiritual insights that You reveal to me everyday.  Even in my lawn.  Root out any weeds that You see.  I want my relationship with You to be rich.  Attractive.  Vibrant.  Glorifying.  An inspiration and a model for others.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.