By Alyssa Hage

This is the second in a special five-part weekly series for March – we’d like to celebrate spring and the opportunities it presents, both physically to the new life on earth, or spiritually to the work Christ is springing forth from our hearts, and pray this series blesses you as you blossom in Christ!

“And Jesus answered them, saying,
The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.
Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone:
but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.
He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world
shall keep it unto life eternal.”
{John 12:23-25}

Seeds are little storehouses entrusted with a plan of God’s design and once planted they release the design imprinted on them. Each of you has God’s plan imprinted on your heart and when God settles you in places that nurture growth, you may accomplish all God intends. Unless a seed falls into the ground and dies, it remains a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Unless the Lord Jesus had died for us, He would’ve been the only One to spend eternity in Heaven. But because He died, many are saved from sin and will spend eternity in Heaven with Him.

Plant seeds are perishable, but the seeds of God’s Word endure forever. The seeds of God’s Word are planted in fertile hearts and are propagated in yielded lives. 1 Peter 1:22-25: “Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: but the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.”

The parable Jesus taught about the seeds in Matthew 13:1-23 is summarized by the following quote, “One for the rock, one for the crow, one to die, and one to grow.” How a seed will grow depends on where it’s planted; how God’s Word is heeded depends on the heart of the hearer. What kind of heart do you have for the Word of God to grow in?

I reap only what I sow. No planting of bulbs in the fall, no tulip blossoms come spring; no effort in speaking to a new girl at church, no friendship will bloom. We harvest according to the kind of seed we plant; so it is with our actions toward others. 2 Corinthians 9:6-8: “But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.” Notice the superlatives—all grace, always, all sufficiency, all things, every good work? God always supplies everything we need to bring forth fruit to His glory. The more bulbs I plant in the fall, the more blooms I will have in the spring. The more I do what God commands, the more Fruit of the Spirit He will produce in my life. Galatians 6:7-9: “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

Tips for Your Garden

Seeds that are more than two years old are less likely to sprout and produce flowers, fruits, and vegetables. As the growing season comes to a close, pluck extra blooms from vegetable plants. These late blooms won’t mature into produce, and removing the blooms will divert growth to already developing produce.Feel free to share any gardening comments below!

Next week, we’ll be back to rejoice in the water with which the Lord waters our heart-gardens.

~Alyssa K. Hage
{Guest Writer}