The Story of the Weed Garden

Once there was a man who owned a small plot of ground. One day he said to himself what shall I do with this land, why let it stand idle? He decided I will plant a garden and I will be diligent and work hard and when harvest comes the land will yield a great portion of fruit. So he sowed some seed and watered and worked the piece of land.
Eventually one day it began to grow, the man was so excited. He was encouraged to work all the harder. Every day he went into the field planting, watering, pruning and chasing away the birds and animals that would devour his work.
As time went on sometimes he would be discouraged. He would look at his garden and think to himself “for all the labour I do the growth looks so sparse". Still he continued to do his job, because that's what you do with a garden. One day he looked in his garden and he saw a small healthy looking plant he had not seen before. It was a small weed. Soon the weed grew and multiplied. The man went to his garden and he was amazed at the growth and strength of this plant. It seemed to do all that you would want a plant to do and it required no help.
The man began to watch it's growth every day with a new fever of enthusiasm. Every morning he would race to his field and see the progress. “Wow!" he thought, “yesterday there was a few and now there are many." Day after day the garden looked fuller and fuller. He stopped worrying about the labour he used to do “I've worked long enough" he thought “Now it's time to see some real growth". Sometimes he would take a walk and see his neighbours' gardens; “Ha, they look so small!"
“If they had half the gardening sense I do they'd really have something going". Finally in time the big day came. It was time for harvest. The man went to his garden to gather his rewards. There it was a beautiful field of green. All those old weak plants he used to work with were long since gone. He thought “well let's get with it".
He went to his plants and began to examine each one closely. Hmm no fruit on the leaves, hmm no fruit on the stock. Let's pull one up and see what's there. He dug, and tugged and pulled. Out it came, he looked at the roots, nothing there either. He stopped and sat a minute. “What's happening" he thought. Then in shock he realized his plight, “They bear no fruit!". For all there growth, the weeds were worthless. He lamented “They looked so great, Oh how they grew and flourished all season".
The man sat and moaned, what could he now do, harvest was over.
Application: Luke 8:8-18; The seed God gave us to plant in the hearts of man, his Word, may not always be the most popular. It may not always be well accepted. It may not be the one easiest to work with. It may not bring in the multitude you were hoping for, but it's the only one that produces fruit.

submitted by Missionary Michael J. Carney