Seeds & Soil

This time of year, gardens feel magical to me. When the rains and warmth of summer finally arrive in Michigan, everything begins to grow. You can almost watch it happen.

What we don't often realize is how much takes place beneath the surface. Seeds are planted. Their shells crack open. Roots push deep into the soil long before green shoots ever appear above the ground.

That's the slow, hidden work. I much prefer the exciting part I can actually see!

Jesus loved to use images of seeds, soil, and vineyards to describe the life of faith. He said that a grain of wheat must fall into the ground and die before it bears much fruit. He compared life with God to branches that remain connected to the vine. He even said the kingdom of God begins like a tiny mustard seed, easily overlooked.

These images remind us that spiritual maturity is never quick and easy.

• Spiritual growth goes deep before it grows up.

• Fruitfulness comes from connection with Christ, not our own effort.

• Pruning is often the pathway to abundance.

• Waiting is never wasted; it is part of God's work in us.

In his book Desire, Jay Stringer challenges our culture's obsession with quick fixes and surface change. Stringer writes, "To wake up to personal growth, we need to become like seeds. Just as a seed germinates in dark conditions, we must face difficult, uncomfortable truths about ourselves if we are to grow." Transformation begins when we become curious about our places of hurt, struggle, and sin instead of hiding them.

Imagine your life as a seed that God wants to plant.

Most of us spend enormous energy protecting the shell. We curate an image that says we have life under control. We compare ourselves with others, hoping to keep up, while quietly feeling anxious or inadequate. We resist the very places where God longs to meet us.

A seed doesn't fail because it cracks. It fulfills its purpose by cracking.

The shell must open before roots can grow. Something hidden must happen before anything beautiful appears. In much the same way, God often does his deepest work in the places we would rather avoid…times of waiting, disappointment, grief, loneliness, and loss. God wants to meet us in these hard places and remind us that He is working even when we can’t see below the surface.

Maybe it feels like the seed of your life has been buried and forgotten. This week take a moment to ask God what he might be growing beneath the surface.