Why Do Dandelions Have to Die?

Same morning routine: clean this filthy kitchen! Papers flood the catch-all bins. Mail, children’s drawings, shopping lists, receipts—for a family that does so much paperless, we are still faithfully helping out the tree farmers. Once again, I spray my Clorox Anywhere, wiping and weeding through the papers. That’s when I found the dried up little daisies and dandelions my 7-year-old son had picked for me two days ago. There is no song that can express the dance in my heart when Haydn flashes those long eye-lashes of romantic pride, revealing the bouquet hidden behind his back for mommy. This may be the last summer that I get those bouquets. It tears me to pieces to see him growing so fast. As I tossed those lovely, dried weeds in the trash, my heart felt the pain of a Band-Aid freshly ripped off the skin. Bitter-sweet. Love to see him grow—hate to say goodbye to the little fella he is. How different it is with our Father in heaven. Yes, He loves to see us grow. But it is his pleasure to transform us from the fella’s that we are. As parents, it’s our job to raise our children to be independent. But sanctification in Christ is much different. As I grow spiritually, I realize more and more how fully dependent I am on Christ for all my blessings, all my righteousness. Haydn is fooled by the dandelion’s bright yellow flower.  And I think it’s adorable. Do you know the meaning of this weed’s name? Dandelion means “lion’s tooth,” named after its jagged leaf. Just like sin, the bright yellow flower of this weed is deceiving. As they seed, my kids blow their fluffy, magical tops and make wishes. The dandelions love that, as they spread for further growth. If only the act of my children’s little fingers yanking from the stalk would kill that jagged-leafed weed. But weeds don’t leave that easy.  So many times in my own life I think I’ve picked some troublesome sin, only to find that I didn’t remove its root. I had only plucked it. Did I keep its root on purpose, or was I fooled? Unfortunately, many times we do not see sin for what it really is. And this is one of the conniving tricks of our adversary. In Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices, Thomas Brooks explains:

Satan knows that if he should present sin in its own nature and dress, the soul would rather fly from it than yield to it; and therefore he presents it to us, not in its own proper colours, but painted and gilded over with the name and show of virtue, that we may the more easily be overcome by it, and take the more pleasure in committing of it. Pride, he presents to the soul under the name and notion of neatness and cleanliness, and covetousness (which the apostle condemns for idolatry) to be but good husbandry [‘thrift’, ‘economy’]; and drunkenness to be good fellowship, and riotousness under the name and notion of liberality, and wantonness as a trick of youth.

I’m sure we can think of some additional dressings such as gossip disguised as prayer requests, enabling under the name of compassion, or even legalism under the guise of holiness. Although we shouldn’t give all the credit to the devil; we are extremely well crafted in the art of spinning. As we grow in Christ, God will reveal the sin in our lives if we are indeed His. And he doesn’t leave us to weed the roots ourselves. Without Christ my so-called good works are worse than a bunch of dandelions. Thankfully, because of his own work, Christ blesses my efforts. When God sees my bouquet, he sees the beauty of Christ’s perfect accomplishment on my behalf. And by his Spirit, I am no longer under the reign of sin. He is graciously leading me into my future glorification where I can dwell eternally with my Morning Glory.