I love having a vegetable garden each summer. But this year, I let the weeds get ahead of me.

It didn’t take long.

That’s the thing about weeds. They don’t ask permission. Left unattended, they quickly crowd out the very things you were trying to cultivate.

My garden was filled with lambs quarter and prickly Canadian thistle. The weeds had grown so thick that it was difficult to even see the vegetables I had carefully planted just weeks before.

As I stood looking at the mess, I felt completely overwhelmed.

I let the garden go.

I’ve ruined what I started.

I’ll never get this cleaned up.

To my embarrassment, I even found myself in tears.

Then I realized something.

I had to start somewhere.

I made a plan. I waited until the cooler part of the day, turned on some good music, and—this still makes me laugh—I even looked online for ideas on tackling an overgrown garden. I know how to pull weeds! But seeing gardens that had been completely restored gave me hope. If they could do it, maybe I could too.

So I started.

One weed at a time.

Before long, I could see progress. I even took pictures along the way because each cleared row reminded me that I was making headway.

What surprised me most wasn’t just how many weeds I removed. It was discovering that the vegetables I’d been afraid I’d lost were still there. They hadn’t been destroyed. They had simply been hidden beneath the weeds.

The garden–all cleaned up

As I worked, I couldn’t help but think about life.

Sometimes grief grows so thick we can’t see hope anymore. At times, the suffocating pressure of financial strain or a soul-crushing relationship makes us wonder if things will ever change. Sometimes parenting leaves us feeling like we’ve failed.

Overwhelm has a way of convincing us that what is hidden is gone.

But often, that isn’t true at all.

God’s work hasn’t disappeared. Hope hasn’t vanished. Like the vegetables in my garden, it has simply been hidden beneath the weeds.

Psalm 121 begins, “I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.”

God rarely asks us to finish the whole journey in one day. He simply asks us to trust Him with the next step. As Galatians 6:9 reminds us, “Let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.”

Perhaps today you’re standing in front of an overgrown “garden” of your own.

Don’t spend all your energy staring at the weeds. Lift your eyes to the One who gives you strength. Ask Him for wisdom. Make a plan. Then pull the first weed.

You may be surprised how quickly hope begins to replace overwhelm once you pull the first weed and discover what is hiding beneath.

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Thanks to Erika Sagert for contributing to my blog this week while I’m away. Erika also happens to be my daughter!

I’m Erika Sagert, and I’m delighted to be a guest contributor on Shirley’s blog. Thanks so much for having me!

Erika Sagert believes some of life’s best lessons are learned in ordinary moments—whether pulling weeds in the garden, leading a team through challenges, or encouraging another homeschool parent. She is the co-founder and Executive Director of Hope Learning Center and the host of The Intentional Homeschooler Podcast. Erika enjoys sharing practical encouragement rooted in faith and helping others move from feeling overwhelmed to living with greater purpose. She lives in Battle Ground, Washington with her husband and loves gardening, projects around the house, hiking, and spending time with her four grown children.