Tending the Heart (Joshua 7:16-26)
In Joshua 7 we read about how serious God sees our sin and the affects it can have not just in our own lives but the lives of others as well. God calls his children to deal with sin quickly, swiftly and completely.
As I read the story of Achan's sin, in Joshua 7, it reminds me of my garden. I am a very novice gardener. I have learned much and am learning even more all the time. Last year, after months of reading, planting and caring for my vegetable plants I discovered some of them had developed powdery mildew. This is a white powder that covers the leaves of the plant and can spread. If left unattended it can prevent the plant from producing its fruit and sometimes destroy it. I immediately did a google search on how to organically treat it and asked my husband to pick up some of the supplies I needed. The next day I had the supplies but I got busy and kept thinking "I'll take care of it later." Then it was time to go on vacation and again I thought, "I'll take care of it when I get back." When I got back it was really bad and had begun to spread to the plants that were growing next it. I put on my gardening gloves and tried to cut off as many infected leaves as possible without completely losing the plant (I was not successful in the long run). Then I went and tended to my cucumber and cantaloupe plants. To make a long story short, I didn't know that mildew spores could be carried on my garden gloves and transferred to the healthy plants I was also working with. I lost all my cantaloupes and some of my cucumber plants as well. If I had acted immediately and removed the infected leaves when I had first noticed the issues and washed my garden gloves and tools before moving to other plants then my garden as a whole would not have suffered the loss it had.
I believe God wants us to treat the sin in our lives with the same swiftness and urgency that I needed to have towards the powdery mildew that had made a home in my garden. Sin that is left unchecked can coat a once healthy heart and prevent us from producing the fruit we are called to produce. If left to long it can even destroy one's faith. Like Joshua was told by God, we cannot think that it is ok to leave even a hint of sin in our lives for any length of time. We need to seek God daily and ask him to reveal anything and everything that is sinful in our lives and ask him to help us to destroy it, to eliminate it completely and for God to cultivate a right heart in its place.
As I enter into this year's gardening seasons I am fully aware of the steps I need to take to try and prevent the powdery mildew from settling but I also need to be ready to battle it as soon as it pops up. Likewise, I encourage each of you to enter into each day seeking God's hand to help you protect your heart from the deceitfulness of sin and to be on the lookout and ready to battle it as soon as you are aware of any in your life. You are God's precious possession (Duet.26:18) and he desires you to grow and learn, don't let sin hinder all that he has for you and all he has planned for you to do.
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