Aggressive gardener

This morning Jon and I were in our courtyard enjoying the sun, blue sky and each other's company. He noted how invasive the ivy is. Snails can't kill it; it is drought resistant and if left to it's own devices, it can overrun the rest of our plants. We observed that this was the case in the courtyard. Jon gathered the tools of the trade. He chose the electric trimmer and gave me the clippers and designated an area for me to work in- the lavender bed.
The smell was heady as I trimmed back both the pesky ivy and the lavender branches. I was humming a tune and all seemed right with the world. Jon stopped to survey my work and dropped his trimmer and advanced on me. He grabbed the edge of the lavender plant and lifted it high in the air to reveal the long runners from the ivy intertwined with the lavender. He reached for my clippers and began hacking away. I was shocked.
" What are you doing?"
"Aggressive gardening" he replied.
"I have never heard of such a thing", I quipped.
"Well, it's the only way to deal with such a fast growing plant. It is crowding out the lavender."
" I will have to tell my brother about aggressive gardening. You know that we do not come from an aggressive family, neither in gardening or driving".
As I replayed this event later, I was reminded that Jesus talked about gardening too. He told his followers that God was the gardener and we are his garden. Often he has to be aggressive with areas of our lives that are dead wood or suckers which drain our strength. Just as Jon was trimming the lavender to give it room to grow, God trims our lives to promote growth, not destroy us. He may be aggressive but he is also tender.