Fight the Weeds

Romans 7:17
Hebrews 12:14-17
Matthew 13:24-30

There is a particular weed growing in my garden that I've been fighting against. Its root is larger than a potato, breaks easily (so I destroy part of it but not the whole plant), and branches out so that each time I break off a stem three more grow in its place. As the gardener I know that to win the battle I will be destroying all the plants growing nearby. But to lose the battle will also destroy those plants since the weed will crowd them out aggressively. So I must regularly break off the stems and dig into the portion of the root I can reach without digging up the nearby plants. It's not a battle I expect to win yet, but it's a battle worth fighting anyways.
.
I can't dig sin out of my life any more effectively than I can dig out that weed. It has entangled itself so thoroughly in me that my will is not enough to avoid sin. Although it helps to decide not to say anything cross when my child disobeys-to instead disciple firmly and calmly-in the heat of the moment I still find myself committing the sin I've sworn to avoid. If I choose or want one thing yet actually DO another, then the weed of sin in me is separate from who I am. If I don't continue to fight it, it will take over my life. Why is it not uprooted entirely? Because it is so big and so deeply ingrained that the uprooting might destroy me. Because I am not the sin but I am weakened by it and the Gardener wants me to grow healthy and strong. I will continue working with Him to fight the weeds, knowing that someday they will be gone altogether.