ONE SEED BRINGS JOY

Toiling. By definition it’s a word I don’t like; “ hard labor, struggle, exertion”. Anyone who has done gardening knows all about toiling. About three months ago I planted 20 sunflowers. It was hot, the ground was hard, the rocks had to be moved, and on and on. Every morning and at night I would water them. The bag of seeds said they would come up in about 28 days. So naturally I expected them to come up in 28 days. And on the 28th day guess what I saw? Nothing..absolutely nothing. The question then became “ should I continue to water hard dirt with nothing there?” It seemed foolish to continue..but I did. We left for Ireland and when we came back I went to see how many of the seeds had blossomed. None. Two months in and nothing. Have you ever “ toiled” for something, someone, or a dream, and had expectations of when that would come to fruition? And then it didn’t happen? At some point every person will come to a crossroad of deciding if they should continue or end it. In the book of Acts the disciples were at that very crossroad. Jesus had just died and they were lost. Should they go back to their old lives…fishing, collecting taxes, or worse yet, be a prostitute? Jesus had given them a new purpose for their lives but He was gone. And then it happened. As some of the disciples did go back to fishing, Jesus calls out to them. He was there, having never really left them, waiting for them on the beach with breakfast! Their JOY and purpose was regained when they saw Jesus. Gods timing is always perfect. We just need to decide if we will wait for Him because He loves us and always has our best interest in mind. After three months of toiling one little plant came up out of the ground. And then another. And another. I just finished planting ten more sunflowers this morning. Why? Because I trust God to grow only the right ones in His time. I want to encourage you to be patient and see that the Lord is good…His timing is perfect..