Showers of Blessing

This past year I observed a tree within one block of my house during my daily walks. Its bare silhouette stood out against the backdrop of verdant trees. No leaves appeared on its branches in any season. I kept thinking, that tree is dead.

Why doesn’t the owner cut it down? Finally, one autumn day, some loggers appeared with heavy equipment on a truck and started cutting down the tree. The following day they returned and ground the stump before covering the area with fresh soil. When the landscaper arrived later that day, he sprinkled some seeds on the area from which the tree had been removed. Since we had not had rain for the previous two weeks, I thought, some birds are going to feed on those seeds.

They’re lying right on top of the soil.

I wondered why the landscaper hadn’t sprinkled a thin layer of soil over the seeds to protect them. Two days afterward, it rained all day.

When I took my walk the following day, I could already see tiny green shoots pushing up through the soil. Two days later, rain fell again for the entire day. The following day, as I walked past that same spot, I spotted grass beginning to cover almost the entire area where the dead tree had been. In that short period —just two days with rain— the seeds had sprouted, and blades of grass almost one inch in length had sprung up. Now there was enough grass to cover the whole patch of soil.

As I pondered the process I had witnessed, I recalled Paul’s letter to the Corinthian church. In it, he stated, “I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase” (1 Corinthians 3:6, KJV). I pray that we may spread seeds of love, joy, truth, peace, and graciousness every day so that the Holy Spirit can bring “the increase” —springing up blades of trust in the hearts of men and women who will, in turn, bear witness to the marvelous light of God. I pray they will be prompted to ask about the difference they see in our lives, compared with those who don’t know Jesus.

May we each feel privileged to be coworkers with God in growing His kingdom of grace here on Earth in preparation to enter His kingdom of glory when Jesus Christ returns.

Florence E. Callender