It had been raining a lot here in South Texas. That also means I have neglected the yard. I could see from the door of our back gate that a few weeds were starting to pop up but nothing to be overly concerned about.
After a month or so of rain and clouds, I decided to give it some more time for the ground to dry up before I started tackling some yard work. Finally, I “suited up” with my mud boots, a hat, some sunscreen, and my cute gardening gloves. I opened up our back gate and to my surprise, well, let's just say the yard was ANYTHING but cute! Our neglected yard was now FLOODED with overgrowth and weeds! I mean, it was like a FOREST with weeds that had grown about a foot high.
And these weren’t just any weeds either. These were nettle! If you’re not familiar with this plant, just know that the slightest contact of this stuff against your skin will leave your body stinging for daaaaays. It literally feels like you have been injected with several needles all at once (OUCH!). It was quite the chore pulling these by hand. And I had to exchange my cute gloves for my husband’s gloves because these plants stung right through my gloves!😳
The thing is, all of this could have been avoided. But I only saw the “surface” of our yard, never looking PAST the exterior of the gate. We worked hard on pulling weeds and beautifying our yard when we first moved in a couple of years ago so we shouldn’t have had to do that all over again. And I was concerned about my previously planted flowers.
Weeds CHOKE OUT anything that is blossoming or fruitful. I should have paid attention to those little weeds that were growing. Had I done so, I could’ve avoided a bigger problem.
Solomon 2:15 says, “It’s the little foxes that destroy the vineyard.” The foxes represent potential problems that could damage relationships. Just like the small weeds, it may seem like no big deal but when problems are not dealt with, it could ruin the whole “vineyard” (or relationship).
When it comes to misunderstandings in relationships, we need to look BEYOND the surface of that individual.
WHY are they critical?
Maybe they struggle with insecurity and need affirmation.
WHY are they fearful?
Maybe they need words of positivity and encouragement.
WHY are they “rough around the edges”?
Maybe they are protecting a tender heart we would get to see if we just look beyond the surface.
I myself don’t always conquer this. But I can tell you that I am working towards looking beyond the surface with eyes of compassion and understanding.
You wanna know what the good news is? Now that I’ve looked beyond the surface of the gate and dealt with those pesky weeds, I’m starting to see the flowers blossoming again!
Was it comfortable? No. Did it sting? Yes. Was it worth it? ABSOLUTELY! In the same token, when we look past the surface and deal with those uncomfortable pesky situations in relationships, we may be surprised to find the result is a blooming and blossoming friendship. Then soon we discover that saving that relationship was definitely worth it.💖
