Long Germination
I’m not much for gardening and I’m sure not a farmer. Still, if I remember my middle and High School science days correctly, the time from when a seed is planted to when it begins to sprout is called germination. During germination, all the planter can do is wait.
One of the wonderful things about our celebration of Easter happening in the spring is the idea that what has lay dormant (dead) over the winter comes back to life again in the Spring. It’s as if we wait all winter to see signs of new life in the spring. But wait we must.
From the time a child is conceived God is working to form the amazing being inside his or her mother’s womb. And we await, often time’s anxiously, the birth!
Experiencing new life often involves waiting. What must it have been like for the disciples to have seen the death of their friend and Savior Jesus, and then came those dark hours when they waited in grief. How glorious the surprise of new life must have been for those who had waited for God to make sense out of the death of Jesus.
Today, I was reminded of how long we sometimes must wait for spiritual seeds that have been planted to germinate and come to bloom. Approximately 5 years ago one of our youthworkers and I met with a very young teenager at the request of his parents. We tried to talk of spiritual things but the young person was resistant to say the least. In fact, he literally hid his face from us while we were talking.
Today, five years later, I met with the same young person at his request to talk over spiritual things. We talked for 1 ½ hours. In that time I answered questions, shared how a person becomes a Christian and asked if he would like to commit his life to Christ. The response? “Not yet!” he said! More waiting!
I am reminded that though I haven’t seen any results of our encounter in those intervening five years, GOD HAS STILL BEEN AT WORK!
I know a family who has prayed for their son to come to faith in Christ for nearly 50 years! Still waiting.
God’s timing is not ours. We live in a fast paced, instant gratification sort of a world. But the Bible talks of slower days; of sowers, and rain showers, and gardeners and those who eventually reap.
What spiritual seeds are you waiting on? What have you planted but have seen no results yet? The resurrection is a reminder that new life comes! It comes by God’s power and in God’s time. As you ponder the resurrection, talk to God about the seeds you have planted, and ask if in His graciousness, you could be blessed to see some of them come to full bloom!
