I was in the garden deadheading my flowers, and I noticed some bindweed. You know, the insidious vine that slithers along the ground, winding itself up everything in sight? If left alone it can kill the plant. In my haste to eliminate the weed, I yanked what I could see and nearly uprooted my beautiful plant in the process.

I believe it’s the same with perceived sin in our lives or another’s. We see a negative behavior, and we want to address it. Right now. So we verbally yank on it, and jerk half of our, or the other person’s, self-image along with it, leaving a gaping hole in our wake.

God is gentle in his dealings with us and with others. Yes, he sees the evidence of bad behavior, but he gently works his way to the root and removes it there. Then the rest of the vine dries up and crumbles off the stem of the plant, leaving its delightful flowers intact.

The truth is, we don’t always know the deep cause of our own behavior, let alone someone else’s. But God does. He wants to remove the root problem without damaging the personality He created. We all have our negative and positive sides, and God loves the core personality He gave us. If we open our hearts and allow Him to work in His way and time, God will nurture the positive into growing so strong it will choke out the negative. Thus leaving the garden of our lives in full bloom.