By Lin Pearson
There are many different gardening styles seen on the allotment site I go to. But I have never seen anyone who, having planted potatoes or sown seed, regularly scoops back soil to view any progress! We leave what we have planted and wait patiently.
Gardening is an activity of faith. We till the soil, plant and sow. We do all we can to prepare the way for productive life to emerge from the ground, and we expect an outcome.
Do you need a miracle?
When you think of it, it is a miracle that a tiny seed, lying in damp, dark soil can produce life which will not only fight to the surface, but bear a crop.
Sometimes we have other situations which are equally in need of a miracle. Maybe we have done all we can for a wayward child, or we can see no way through a trying work situation. It may be that, despite being prudent, times are hard financially, or that the responsibilities of life seem increasingly overwhelming.
Stop doing and start waiting
Regardless of the situation, there comes a point when we must stop “doing” and start waiting for God to step in. We mustn’t dig over ground best left undisturbed; we mustn’t cajole or manipulate people or situations. Instead we should simply trust that the Creator who put vitality and fruitfulness into a dry, tiny seed will step into our dark situation and transform it.
Do I have enough faith?
You may feel: “But my faith is so small. I just cannot believe there is a way through.” It’s an old saying, but still true: “You may have small faith, but put your small faith in a great God.”
You may have to wait for the big breakthrough, but waiting in faith can be a time of many smaller, but nonetheless important blessings and victories in your life.
Do all you can—and no more than that—then leave the rest to God and you can expect an outcome!◄
This article was published by The Faith Mission, Edinburgh, in FIRST! magazine March/April 2009