I felt inventive. Despite my age of eight (going to be nine that summer; and if I am wrong about the age it is only by a year older so nine going to be 10 and so forth), I thought by watching television shows, cartoons, and movies of kids near my age accomplishing great feats of creation, I felt I was worthy to join in their ranks. My creation: a go cart. How? I don’t know. I just assumed put some stuff together and take a lawnmower type motor off from something that wasn’t needed as much and affix it to a frame (where in the world was a frame going to come from?) and there we go. From my push toward my grandma and then to my grandpa that evening when he got home from work, we spent the rest of that warm evening after supper taking pieces of metal to make a frame, and then weld a little bit of this, and then add that. And what was an idea for a go cart became something completely different, unexpected, and initially extremely disappointing. Despite what I saw on television and wanted, what I ended up with was a homemade wagon with a dumping bed, wood bottom and sides, with the front and back gates removable. It was initially rusted. It was made with scrap wood. But it was complete. The next day through efforts of spray paint (what did I know with what kind of paint to really use as well as I had never painted before outside of watercolors, this was my first attempt to do anything beyond the confines of an elementary classroom) and some adult assistance, the wagon was complete. Except for one thing: a brand or name on it. One was quickly decided and scrolled on it in red enamel paint “Williams Bros. Farms”. It was painted on both sides. Stenciled or even with ruler for prep? Nah, too much like work and effort. After all, I was going to be nine years old and the prime of youthful creation. Nothing was going to slow me down…even if it looked cheesy. So I just did my best with large grand letters initially and then making the letters smaller and tighter together as I discovered I ran out of room. Fly by the seat of your pants was the way I did things then.
With the summer over, our creation sat in the garage and sometimes used outside until the following year. And this time, I had a real purpose; a real load and not just toys or a little bit of dirt. That summer my grandmother planted at least half an acre of Idaho potatoes. The wagon’s purpose was to haul load after load of potatoes from the garden to the house. For the first time, I really felt important and truly part of a team accomplishing a needed goal. So while my brother and I speedily loaded and unloaded the wagon (making use of the dumping capability of the wagon), my parents, my uncle, my soon to be aunt, and my grandparents were actively uprooting the potatoes on that farm. It was hard work but that garden was done in one evening. As I have said before, about the only thing that farm ever could produce were rocks (dig hardly below the ground and you hit rocks), my grandma’s large garden, and a bumper crop of Idaho potatoes from a separate garden.
Recently a word uproot (also similarly root out) were deposited into my spirit. A particular verse reminded to me by the Holy Spirit is found in Jeremiah 1:10 which begins with, “See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down…” Without realizing effort made months prior to seed potatoes planted, months or years of work done by my grandparents and others on that piece of dirt to root out the rocks and sift away the soil to reclaim it and put it back into the garden in order to make the piece of ground usable for a garden. Praise God that when salvation hits a man, woman, or youth, there are things that immediately drop off. Perhaps cussing, stealing, drinking alcohol, doing drugs, whatever it may be were quick habits or addictions that disappeared from our daily lives. Praise God for His Son’s blood which washes away sins of the past, present, and future. But anyone who has lived for Jesus for any long amount of time knows that there are other areas that the Holy Spirit needs to work on. Perhaps areas of rejection, racism, bitterness, anger, hatred, etc. are dealt with. Perhaps routinely or even when occasion or incident arises and the Holy Spirit pings our heart that “this is not right”. And like those rocks and like those potatoes harvested, the Holy Spirit has to uproot things out of lives. And this isn’t moving the rock from one place to another or moving/exchanging one habit for another one. And this also isn’t putting that matter or issue on the back burner to deal with it later. Sooner or later, God will deal with our hearts that the elephant in the room needs to be addressed. Moses and Aaron were about to go onto their journey back to Egypt to withstand Pharaoh but God had to deal with Moses (God was going to kill Moses) because Moses’ sons were not circumcised. A matter of consecration, a marked person toward God, and Moses neglected it. Whether it comes through a pastor (or pastor’s wife), a Christian friend, a family member, a coworker, or whoever we soon have to come face to face with the issue. Despite a number of good things that happened for the young king Josiah (events recorded in the Bible), 2 Chronicles 35 records a fatal decision to combat Egypt. Egypt was on their way to take care of something, was simply passing by Josiah’s domain and had nothing militarily to do with Israel/Judah. But anger and pride rose up in Josiah and rather to heed the biblical or I will say Christian advice given by a sinner (this is important to note and bad to happen when sinners are more of a Christian than a Christian is behaving), the King (Necho II) of Egypt told King Josiah that it would be against God to fight him when Egypt was on their way to fight Babylon. This sadly cost Josiah’s life as well the lives of others and all completely unnecessary. Left unsurrendered and left unconfronted, we can self implode in ways that God gets no glory and miles of progress gets ruined by destructive behaviors, decisions, words, and/or actions. And worse yet we take others down in our sinking ship. Destinies are ruined. Plans of God completely skewed or over. Holiness is marred.
This is why Jeremiah 1:10 concludes that verse with two healing events that need to occur during the time where uprooting occurs: “to build, and to plant.” To build connotes the image of a tower or building. It will become strong and will serve a valuable/needed purpose. To plant connotes a crop where seeds are planted and eventually we have corn, sorghum, or whatever. But both verbs have two similar traits: time and work. First, uprooting and then building is never quick and easy. It takes time. Despite the number of laborers in that potato garden, it took hours of work to get it cleared of potatoes. And the issues, traits, etc. that are in our lives—some surface but many are buried in layers of walls or fronts—require time to deal with it. This means that God may have to use a time of loss or a time of sermons preached or a time of being set down from ministry responsibility to allow God to do His work. The second is work. It was dry, hot, and a lot of work using whatever tools and hands available to uproot those potatoes from that garden. And it takes diligent effort not only on God’s part, but our part as well. We desire to be better at our weight, our finances, our relationships with someone or others, to know His word, etc. But it never happens overnight and it never happens with a prayer and presto all is done (we call it microwave Christianity). We have to make decisions to cut back, to keep our mouths shut, to give and serve when our prior desires/nature was to take and receive.
Just as the final load of potatoes were hurriedly loaded in the wagon and on its way to the house—and the reason why we all had to work diligently—a rain storm came in. We all got wet, we all were tired, and the final wagon load was left under the cedar tree in the yard with its load. We had so many potatoes stored we literally had no room to put them anywhere without extra effort and getting soaked in the rain in the process. And so the wagon sat.
That following Christmas the wagon remained (even if the load was emptied). The following summer the wagon remained. I would see it and fondly remember the creation of the wagon and the loads of potatoes it hauled. And who could forget the dump bed. All of this completely homemade by my grandfather and uncle Gary. But now the condition of the wagon showed weathering. The wooden sides was bowed and come apart, the gates were broken or missing, the lettering was nearly washed away, and the white paint revealed its original gray woodgrain finish. Within another year or two the wagon disappeared (most likely just tossed out of the way and later destroyed). And this, too, serves as a lesson. Despite careful, dutiful, and passionate efforts made initially to make the wagon, we, too, can be made incredible by the forgiving and restorative powers of Christ and His blood. But when we take our walk for granted, when we stop being grateful (and complain more than thanking God and others), when we begin to trust and live by our emotions and strength (or past victories), when fervor gives way to “religion”, what once was needed and have a purpose no longer is fit for the Master’s use (see 2 Timothy 2:20-21). It, hopefully, hasn’t gotten to the point of Matthew 7:21-23, but we are certainly not making positive advancements or efforts to climb higher. We stagnate. We compromise. We sit and settle. And we just stop. 2 Timothy 2:15 says that we need to, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” The key word I would like to focus on is the word diligent. This means that we have to put in effort too and not let or think that we can put it all on God’s shoulders to fix or change us without us contributing toward that change. Just like a student in school has to be diligent at their studies to not only know the material beyond just for the test, we have to be diligent to know His Word but to also be diligent in application of His Word. Often we want to excuse ourselves from diligent work by saying we have faith and because we have our little ministry that is all the effort we need to make. No need for diligent prayer; no need for diligent reading; no diligent effort to be involved in church beyond scheduled events. But being diligent is active and involved. It is every bit of our heart, our strength, our mind, our focus, our passion, our everything needs to be about Him, His Kingdom, His plans, His desires, His calling/Calling, His work, His will to seek and to save that which is lost by going to the highways and hedges so that His house may be full. It means to not only actively read the Bible, but to read other books that help us to understand the Bible more (clearly). To apply His complete Word throughout our Christian life completely.
I never did get a go cart. Many years later (and many years ago) I rode on a go cart twice at a park in Corpus Christi. But this go cart ride takes effort to remember. But it takes only a second or a memory reminded and the potato patch and wagon come rushing back into my memory with a smile. May Jesus and what God smiles at be more than a memory for us but a life lived. Let us be out from under the tree and put back into full service.