It’s springtime and clean up time in the Texas Hill Country. We have 3.5 acres with 20+ garden beds. We’ve been blessed with a good amount of rain over the fall and winter, so it’s been a boon to the weeds which now threaten to completely take over the property. Here’s a before picture of just one of the garden beds:

You can see I am literally in the weeds. Cleaning up the gardens is hard, dirty, and time-consuming work. Some of the weeds are easy to pull and with a single yank yield the root ball. Other weeds look like a large single mass but are composed of single tiny plants with their own tiny roots which take lots of plucking and digging to remove.

While I was out there yesterday cleaning this bed, I got to thinking about how often in my life I’ve felt like I’m “in the weeds.” Those were the times I’ve been overwhelmed, couldn’t see a way through the current situation, and wondered if I had the faith and strength to get through it.

Weeds can be unexpected life changes as the result of losing a job, health issues, accidents, a family member’s addiction or major change, financial reversal, death of a loved one, or many other events. One event, such as a life-threatening illness, can have a domino effect.

An acquaintance that received a stage 3 cancer diagnosis learned that her treatments were going to be extremely expensive. Her husband, who had been self-employed, was trying to care for her but realized he needed to get a job that provided insurance, needed help getting his wife to appointments, and the bills kept coming. The emotional challenge of dealing with the illness, the financial situation and the stress of finding another job landed on them in a single week. The weeds seemingly sprung up overnight and threatened to completely take over their lives.

When my children were young their father’s company was sued and ended up closing. Overnight we went from having a steady income, a company car, and what appeared to be a secure future, to being personally sued, losing the car, no income (I was a stay-at-home mom), and a very uncertain future. We were definitely “in the weeds.”

When you’re in the weeds, it is difficult to see an end to the struggle. It’s even more difficult to imagine a positive outcome. The weeds appear so concentrated that they obstruct your view of most everything else. You can become so focused on the weeds that you cannot see past them to any other aspects of your life, especially any positive or uplifting things. Anger, grief, frustration and a feeling of hopelessness can creep in.

Trying to address one type of weed seems to allow the other weeds to flourish. At one point I had that sense of ‘running but never getting ahead’ and I felt very much alone. I forgot and couldn’t see that there was help available to me. All I needed to do was call on the Lord.

We know that Jesus Christ suffered all things while in mortality. He experienced anger, grief, frustration, sorrow and hopelessness. In the Garden of Gethsemane, He also experienced all our pains and suffering, accepted the penalties for our transgressions. Who better to understand what we are going through when we are in the weeds? Who better to direct us and help us navigate our way out?

Psalms 55:22 reminds us to “Cast thy burden upon the Lord and he shall sustain thee…”

Galations 6:2 tells us to “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

1 Peter 1:7 instructs us “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that periseth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”

For my acquaintance with the cancer diagnosis, she and her family turned to the Lord and literally miracles happened in her life. Her family and friends rallied around her during her treatments, her husband found a job that also provided the health insurance they needed, and help appeared from many corners of the community. She is currently in remission.

When I did turn to the Lord during that difficult time, I found the strength to go out and find a job, received the help and support of friends and family, and was blessed with many miracles. These things did not happen overnight. I did have to work – hard! I did a lot of praying and had to exercise faith that the Lord had us. And He did. And I learned so much about myself, about the Lord’s goodness and mercy, and about how important it was to not focus on the weeds.

Remember that if you are “in the weeds,” the results of relying on the Lord and doing the work will yield wonderful results. Like my garden bed…**

I’ll leave you with the words of the prophet Alma to his son, Helaman:

“I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words and learn of me; for I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day.” (Alma 36:3)

I know this to be true because I’ve experienced it and witnessed it. And you can too.

Wishing you peace in Christ,

Audrey

**Gardening tip:  If you enlarge the picture of the cleaned-up garden bed you will see some white powdery patches on the back side. This is food-grade diatomaceous earth. It is an excellent way to deal with fire ant beds (which are all too common here). I discovered this product when I had chickens. I used it in their nesting boxes under the bedding and on the floor of the coop to keep down fleas and mites, then learned it worked on the fire ant beds. It is non-toxic to humans and animals, very environmentally safe.