“I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.” – 1 Cor 3:6
As the proud owner of a 1954 home that is built on a sandy pinensula known as St. Petersburg, Florida we have many projects we would like to get done to get this house in shape. When trying to get our backyard to grow grass we couldn’t help but notice the presence of piles of shells under the sand/soil that are sometimes several feet thick that remind us that this place was once under water and may someday be there again. I like to call our backyard our sandbox. We put down 6000 pounds of topsoil and zillions of Bermuda seeds a week prior to when it was supposed to rain on a daily basis. We have seen little results because we have been lacking rain.
It reminded me that we can try to grow things in our lives by our own efforts but the best things in life only grow when God is front and center in the process. Some things just take rain and that builds our reliance on God because we never know when it will happen or if it happens but when it does we know where it comes from. Despite our best efforts, only then will it grow. We can plant like Paul or water like Apollos but without God’s part even our best efforts are useless. We have tried to work around God through irrigation and city water systems which have been developed to try to remove some of the unpredictability of nature but in the end we must rely on God for our sustenance and for life.
The yard is just a small reminder but God teaches us reliance on Him in many other ways. What are some ways that God has taught you the value of waiting on His provision instead of trying to do everything on your own?
0 Responses
Matt,
You make an excellent point.
I have been one of those in the past who have tried to do it all on my own it leads only to burn out. We must equip. We must share the load of the the responsiblity to others at time for different things. We must sow the seed and wait. Wait paitently on God. That one thing that I have learned. God’s time is not our time. Alot of times we rush into things when God isn’t ready. We need to wait on God to provide the increase. He will. If we are patient. We must understand that life and ministry is about His will not ours and that is a very hard thing sometime for us to do whether it be an eldership, deacon, youth minister, singles, small groups, worship minister, associate minister, minister, what ever God has called us to do. We must understand who God is and understand that He is the one who provides the increase.
My pray is that elderships will read your post and come to the understand that God is one responsible for increase not the minister. God is the one can do all things if we trust Him. Do eldership trust God as they should? Do ministers?
Do can do all we ask or can possibliy imagine that is at work within us.
Thank you so much for this wonderful post.
God bless you brother.
Keep up the great blogging.
Thank you for this post. Sometimes I struggle with “slow” conversions. When you study and study with someone and their questions tell you they are very close and you dont want to push them. I am not sure if it is just the excitement inside that I am trying to contain of if I am truly so impatient. Thank you for reminding me that I need to wait and let God do what He does.
Peace
Neva
PS–you are supposed to be getting some rain this week arent you? Maybe that will take care of the fires out there.
n