Jim Mann
“Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains”. (James 5:7)
If you’ve ever been to New Life Church’s beautiful 40-acre north Denton campus, you know that we have a hill with three large wooden crosses. I love to go out there and pray, read my Bible and think. You can catch some amazing sunsets and sunrises there!
Last year, at the end of October, another church member and I went out with rakes and a big box of bluebonnet seeds.
Imagine that hill below the crosses covered in bluebonnets!
It was a wet winter. Everyone was saying, “This is the year for bluebonnets”. As spring came, I can’t tell you how many times I was out looking for sprouts! How many times I called my friend with the green thumb and asked, “When are they coming up?!” Her answer every time, “Be patient”.
As I write this, they’re beginning to show. They’re beautiful! But it isn’t a bumper crop. So, I asked my friend why the field isn’t full – like you see on the side of the road. Guess what her answer was, “Be patient”. Each one of this year’s flowers will produce seeds for next year.
In the book of James, he’s describing the Christian life in terms of a farmer. When we ask God for wisdom, we plant a seed. When we “tame the tongue” we plant a seed. When we forego temptation, when we do what the Bible says to do, when we add works to our faith, when we avoid greed, when we manage our relationships from a godly perspective, all of these are seeds of a great, Christian life – germinating, growing.
When we planted the field of flowers, we mowed it, set the boundaries, measured it, bought the right amount of seeds, raked and scraped it, removed rocks and spread the seed. The rest is up to God – weather, rain, sun. But those bluebonnets are coming!
If you’re not planting seeds, there won’t be a harvest. But if you’re planting seeds and not yet seeing a dramatic change in your life – don’t give up! God is faithful, the harvest will come. Do the work and trust in God for the results.
Jim Mann, Ph.D. pastors New Life Church at Robson Ranch. This interdenominational church meets at the Robson Clubhouse on Sunday mornings at 8:30 a.m. Visit New Life’s website, www.NewLifeDenton.org, for more information or Jim’s website www.drjimmann.com.