MOWING THE YARD!

I hate yard work, the weeding, fertilizing, planting flowers, keeping them alive, and in general cultivating plants of any kind to grow.  I hate it.  Maybe my lack of love comes from the fact that I kill every plant I try to grow.  Seriously, I have a black thumb.  Don’t get me wrong I try, I really do try to make flowers and plants thrive.  I have tried to plant flowers and spruce up the outside of my home.  Then it happens, subtly at first but it happens, the plants die.  They are met with the tragic fate of not being watered, being over watered, and of course cows.  I can honestly say that I can’t get anything to successfully grow in my care; I’ve even killed a cactus!  The only thing that thrives in my yard is grass and weeds.  Grass and weeds are something that I can deal with; I can mow them, and I LOVE to mow!

Yes, this anti yard working woman loves to mow.  Push mower, riding mower, zero turn mower it doesn’t matter, I love using them all.  (OK, I will admit that I LOVE using a zero turn mower the best, I’m crazy like that!)  Maybe this love/hate relationship I have with plants is one of the reasons that I love to mow my yard.  Maybe I love to mow because when I was growing up I’d mow on Saturday and then jump into the pool to cool off and clean it.  Maybe I love to mow because the smell of fresh cut grass first thing in the morning makes me smile and think of the perfect peace of Heaven.  Maybe the reason that I love to mow is deeper than that.

To me, mowing is like walking with Christ on a day to day, step by step, and moment by moment basis.  Think about it, when you are mowing you step out into an area that seems jungle like (or is that just my yard?), and an area that seems unconquerable.  Then you grab your tool and start.  One step at a time, one push at a time, one moment, one path you push on until your first row is done.  Then you turn and start your next row.  As you plod along, slowly but surely, you see progress; you see where you have been.  Looking forward you see the paths that still need to be conquered.  If you look too far ahead you can get overwhelmed.  If you look back you can see the joy of where you have been and if you’re not careful you’ll want to give up and run back to the area that has already been conquered.  So you stop and concentrate on the path you are working on in that moment.  Slowly, step by step, you keep moving forward and moving on towards your goal.

To me, mowing is the perfect summary of the Christian walk.  As long as I am walking the path set before me, armed with the right tool, specifically prayers and the Bible, I can conquer anything.  As my life progresses and I look back, I can see so many victories and triumphs that if I’m not careful will cause me to want to run back to that area.  If I look too far ahead I focus on the jungle, the dangerous area ahead of me that I haven’t gotten to yet and I will get discouraged quickly.  But, if I slow down and walk the path right in front of me, taking each step slowly and deliberately, moment by moment; I will be victorious and a conqueror in time, Christ’s perfect time.

I am not perfect, far from it.  Truthfully I hate summer and the heat and wish it was fall like weather year round.  In spite of all that, I will choose to mow my yard and enjoy the blessing that it yields me, a nice cut lawn, albeit one free of flowers and greenery.  Likewise I will choose to focus on Christ and the path that I am walking on now.  I will praise God for the victory that He has given in the past and purpose to no worry about the paths of the future.  I will be in the now, in this moment, walking this path, and rejoice that I have been given all that I need to do so. 

Mowing and Jesus, they are more intertwined than I thought.  Who knew right?