R.E.A.L. Women Devotional - Field of Weeds

We've had an unusual amount of rain this year.  Our state has been in a drought now going on six years.  We've had water restrictions for the past year and many  homeowners have removed their grass/landscaping and replaced it with plants that don't need much water.

Today, as I took my lunch break walk, I noticed this field of weeds.  The weeds were at least 3 feet in height.  Usually this lot is dry and filled with dirt and just random patches of weeds.

This reminded me of a movie back in the 80's called "Field of Dreams" starring Kevin Costner.  As I thought about the title of the movie, while looking at this field of weeds, it was a teaching moment.  The rain has been amazing.  It has greened up the hillsides that are often brown, it's cleaned the air and most importantly is getting us out of the drought.

As I looked at this field, it reminded me that along with the goodness of rain, the unwanted weeds also grow.  As we go along in life, we have dreams that we hope will come to pass.  As we allow God to reign in our life, often those unwanted issues in our lives will begin to sprout.  So much so that sometimes it can be overwhelming. Often times, we choose to let the weeds grow because "at least they are green and living."  But weeds are not the same as a true plant or tree.  Weed roots are short and suck the life out of the real plants that are trying to grow. A plant's roots go deep into the soil and eventually produce something sturdy and healthy.

Many times, we trade our dreams for the weeds, just because it's too much work to remove them.  Your back begins to ache, it's dirty, there are worms and snails that surprise you as you dig around in the dirt, but those weeds will never die unless you pull them from the root. 

This field was a good reminder to me today, that as I continue to trust God with my dreams and allow Him to reign in my life, the weeds are going to grow with my dreams. My responsibility is to pull the weeds, God's responsibility is to grow the dreams.  One of my favorite Proverbs is "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life." (Proverbs 13:12)  It's going to take a lot of work to keep the weeds from choking out my dreams, but I'd trade a field of weeds for a field of dreams any day!