| Guest Post by Jonathan Pelsy |
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10-11
As a cloud of dust wafts up behind the corn planter, I’m amazed by the process that is happening before me. A piece of machinery is methodically planting kernels of seed into a furrow of soil. In a few days (here in the warmth of sub-Saharan Africa where I have been working, growth happens quickly), a plant will poke up from the ground where the seed was planted. As a
farmer, I have the opportunity to see this exciting phenomena occur each planting season.
It is a mystery how a dormant seed that has been sitting in a bag for 6 months, when placed in soil, comes to life with some moisture. A seed sprouts on it’s own, but then needs nutrients and water to sustain it’s growth. The farmer hopes for a good return on his labor in the form of a high-yielding crop.
The spirit of God works in hearts much the same way that a seed germinates. Jesus describes the miracle of germination in Mark 4. “And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.”
How is my fruitfulness to God with the seed of faith He has given me? As a believer, I need the Living Water that God supplies to nourish my heart and soul. I need God’s word to take root and grow in my spirit. I hold on to the promise in Isaiah that it will not emerge empty, but fulfill God’s purposes.
Seed of Faith
Emerge. Grow. Fruit. Harvest.
How am I sustaining growth in my faith as I mature as a Christian?
Is there outward evidence in my life of this growing faith?