Monday, June 3, 2019


Bloom and Grow
by Jeannine Sawall

Then he said to his disciples, "the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask The Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into this harvest field."

 Years ago, I planted a strawberry patch in my garden. As the snow melted away and the first glimmers of spring began to emerge, I went up to my garden to see how my strawberry patch had fared this past winter. In just a few years, those 20 plants have multiplied and spread to fill the patch and are spilling over into other parts of my garden.

As I marveled at my growing patch, I found several lessons for our Christian life. Just as those strawberries spread, our Christian influence is capable of spreading everywhere we go. Strawberries bloom where they are planted and we, as Christians, are to bloom where we are planted. While I started with only 20 plants, they have spilled over and have planted themselves in areas I hadn't planned on. As followers of Christ, our influence can surpass our expectations in areas of our life we didn't expect. Whether it is in our homes, our workplace, our friendships or random encounters, when we allow Christ to reign in our lives, the gospel message spreads.

Even though the patch is flourishing, there's still work to do. In order to enjoy the berries, I have to tend to the patch. The Lord posts a "help wanted" sign in the last part of the verse above from Matthew. When I tend to the patch, the harvest is plentiful and sweet. However, if I ignore it, the weeds get in and choke out the plants, the ripened berries will either rot on the vine or animals whom I do not want to reap the berries will steal my harvest. Any harvest requires workers and while God does not NEED us to get His work done, the glory of it all is He wants to use us. He is willing to share the blessings of His harvest work with us if we are willing to obey and be His workers.

A simple strawberry patch offers us a lot of insight into our spiritual lives. We are to grow our Christian influence wherever we are planted. We are to tend to our spiritual walk and be available to The Lord. If we walk in disobedience or refuse to do the work we are called to, we miss what the Lord has in store for us and our sphere of influence is diminished, allowing others who may not have God's purposes in mind to steal our blessings and the harvest. However, when we walk in obedience and availability, He allows us to bloom and grow.

GOING DEEPER:
1) Where is your Christian influence spreading?
2) How do you make yourself available to reap God's harvest?

FURTHER READING:


Jeannine is a wife and mother of four great boys. She works in the property management business. Jeannine serves in several behind-the-scenes ministries at Oakwood and has a heart for those who are grieving.