Read through the Gospels in a Year: Mark 4:21-41
Read the New Testament in a Year: 1 Corinthians 8
Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. — Mark 4:27
My wife always wants to plant a garden. I personally like to get my food from Kroger as opposed to growing it in our backyard in Ironton. However, it is always fascinating to me how a seed becomes a plant. It’s truly an amazing thing.
There is a children’s book called the Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel. One tale is the Toad planting a garden. After a day or two he began to fret about whether his seeds would ever sprout and grow. So he sang to them, stayed up with them all night (in case they were afraid of the dark), and even screamed at them and wept over them. Exhausted, Toad finally fell asleep. When he awoke, he saw to his great relief that the seeds had sprouted.
Too often, I am like Toad when working in Jesus’ church and God’s kingdom. I act and feel as if it all depends on me. As Jesus tells us in his parable, however, God’s garden grows from seed to harvest “all by itself.” So much of this is a mystery. We need to do our part—sow the seed, water, tend the garden, and reap the harvest—but we do not make the seed grow. That happens by God’s gracious work. We can simply delight in doing our small part in growing the kingdom.
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