Proverbs 3:3  Let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.

Yesterday was such a beautiful day.  It is so enjoyable to see spring flowers and blossom trees blooming.  We are particularly blessed by the beautiful gardens that we see.  Those gardens sure don’t come about by accident.

Lawns and gardens don’t have red idiot lights that indicate attention is needed NOW!  (They’re called idiot lights because only an idiot ignores them.)  Lawns and gardens simply need someone who cares and takes the time to notice – and attend them.  It also helps if that person enjoys the beauty they can possess.

While well-tended lawns and gardens can become an ego thing (not good), they hopefully reflect a desire to faithfully take care of what one has – being faithful.  Whether the yard and gardens are big or small, their beauty is enhanced by the tending they receive.

Isn’t it interesting that left unattended, lawns and gardens have their beauty diminished?  The beauty is overshadowed by the neglect of the one responsible for them.   While the flowers and colors might be noted, passers-by are more struck by the neglect than they are by the beauty.

Lawn and gardens – love and faithfulness – all need regular tending.  The ‘flowers’ of love and faithfulness are mercy, kindness and truth.  What are the detractors from love and faithfulness?  The ‘weeds’ are selfishness, hatred, hypocrisy or falsehood.

We have the opportunity to display the goodness and kindness of our God wherever we go.  We have the privilege of representing Him and His character – His living Word made alive in us.  The exciting thing is that our Christ-like character has a fragrance and attractiveness that draw people to Him.  We get to be used each and every day as expressions of His beauty.

We’re not perfect and there are always going to be ‘weeds’ in our lives to be tended, but they are going to be minimized in the lives of those who are truly Jesus-followers.  Such lives live out the marvelous command of Jesus in Matthew 5:16,

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.