With spring coming, we have been learning about how to grow different seeds. All of nature testifies of our Creator. The seeds testify of Jesus, and what He went through for us, and also teach us about our growth.
Jesus said He is the seed that fell to bring new life. In Matthew 13 Jesus gives 3 parables about seeds. I love how Jesus uses simple things in nature to teach us. This is NLT version of the parables. I grew up with the KJV, but the slight change in wording helps it become fresh and makes me think more.
The Sower and the Seeds
"Listen! A farmer went out to plant some seeds. As he scattered them across his field, some seeds fell on a footpath, and the birds came and ate them. Other seeds fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. The seeds sprouted quickly because the soil was shallow. But the plants soon wilted under the hot sun, and since they didn't have deep roots, they died. Other seeds fell among thorns that grew up and choked out the tender plants. Still other seeds fell on fertile soil, and they produced a crop that was thirty, sixty, and even a hundred times as much as had been planted! Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand."
We automatically assume that we are the good, fertile soil and that other people are the hard, rocky, thorny soil. If we can see that we can be hardened, rocky, shallow, and filled with thorns- we are more likely to want to change and allow our trials to tutor us. We hope that our heart's soil becomes less hard, less rocky, less filled with thorns and less shallow, and more fertile ground for faith in Jesus to grow.
The Wheat and the Tares
"The Kingdom of Heaven is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field. But that night as the workers slept, his enemy came and planted weeds among the wheat, then slipped away. When the crop began to grow and produce grain, the weeds also grew. The farmer's workers went to him and said, 'Sir, the field where you planted that good seed is full of weeds! Where did they come from?' "An enemy has done this!' the farmer exclaimed. "Should we pull out the weeds?' they asked. "No', he replied, 'you'll uproot the wheat if you do. Let both grow together until the harvest. Then I will tell the harvesters to sort out the weeds, tie them into bundles and burn them, and to put the wheat in the barn."
The Mustard Seed
"Here is another illustration Jesus used, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a mustard seed planted in a field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but it becomes the largest of garden plants; it grows into a tree, and birds come and make nests in its branches."
The night of the Passover dinner before Jesus' arrest and crucifixion, Jesus told his disciples, "I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels- a plentiful harvest of new lives. Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. Anyone who wants to be my disciple must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me." John 12:24-26 NLT
Jesus is the seed that we plant in our hearts. Let me tell you a little about seeds, and how they testify of Jesus. Seeds teach us about what Jesus went through for us, and also some of what we go through in following Him.
We have been learning about how to grow microgreens- plants grown in shallow trays with soil. For a time, they are covered, light is blocked and they are weighed down. "The weight forces the tiny seedling to anchor itself in the soil. This produces a stronger and better-rooted plant." (link to quote). This hit me as truth. Do our trials force us to anchor ourselves? To anchor to truth, to Him that is truth, to Jesus?
Another reason microgreens are covered with weight is that it helps the plant to discard the seed's tough shell- the necessary protective covering that has kept the seed from spoiling. There are different methods of applying pressure to the seeds. Some growers use other flats filled with soil and seeds as the weight to encourage growth- they stack seed trays on top of each other. Another method is to put heavy bricks on the seedlings. One grower said they stack growing trays and also put a 15 lb brick on top of the stacks of seed trays. Wow, that's a lot of weight for a tiny seed, it's amazing that they are strong enough to grow and push back under that pressure! You have probably seen a plant growing in a tiny crack of concrete, or in the cracks between rocks. It is amazing plant roots can crack rocks and boulders.
The darkness causes the seeds to push upward and reach for light. Without the darkness, the seeds wouldn't have to stretch, discard their shells and push through the dirt to reach the light. The darkness of the world causes us to reach for Jesus and the light He is to us. The worse the world becomes, the brighter Jesus' light and love is to us. Our heart is where Jesus' love is meant to grow deep roots. The trials we go through are removing some of the hardness, rockiness, and thorns in our hearts. We may be weighed down at times by the choices of people around us. Most of us have hard shells to shed, our unbelief, our worries about what others think, and our attachment to worldly things. Maybe our shell is our set expectations, and we are learning to trust more in God's plan.
Not all seeds have tough shells to discard though. Jesus was perfect, humble, honest and direct, yet forgiving and loving. He always directed any praise to Heavenly Father. Like the seeds are weighed down, Jesus bore the weight of all of our sins. Our sins were his weight, we each were part of the pains he suffered. He spared us the crushing effects of our sins by taking on himself our transgressions.
One plant that I collected seeds from last fall was angelica. I will tell you about how I came across angelica at the end of this post, but it is a special, medicinal plant with tall majestic white flowers. Angelica seeds need to be placed in winter-like conditions before they will sprout. A month is the minimum time needed for the seeds to sit in a winter climate- if not a real winter, a fridge may work. Many wildflowers have this protective mechanism to prevent the plants from germinating too soon. Even after the cold period, the seeds might take months to sprout. Waiting, nurturing the seed, hoping and wondering if they will grow at all, is how some very special plants grow. Having children teaches us a lot about the waiting, hoping, and wondering that is a key part of the faith.
Jesus was at peace in His Father's timing. He waited for the timing to be right for his mission and for the miracles he performed. I wonder what led his mother, Mary, to ask Jesus to intervene at the wedding in Cana, when the wine ran out. It was Jesus' first public miracle. It is interesting that Jesus turned the water to wine after the man-made supply had run out. Had Mary seen Jesus do miracles in their home? Jesus grew in learning and wisdom, waiting for the right time to begin his mission. For us, timing for answered prayers or waited blessings is something we wrestle with. Patience with the uncertainty of our trials, and being at peace in God's care and His timetable is a critical key to following the Lord. Jesus' words in the Lord's prayer, asking for daily bread, are a reminder to ask the Lord for strength to get through today, to trust God for daily support, just as the little birds trust God.
Some seeds, like nasturtiums, sweet peas and others, are put through scarification, they are scarred, before they are planted. Growers will get sandpaper and scar the seeds so that they will sprout. Wow, this really reminds me of Jesus and his scars for us. Isaiah says "He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:5.
Some seeds are unlocked with intense heat, like forest fires. Evergreen trees of certain kinds have pine cones that are covered with a protective waxy resin, they are known as serotinous cones. The fires and intense heat melt the protective resin and open the pinecones where the seeds are stored.
When we had forest fires close to us, after gathering up our families, we anxiously watched news of the fires from a safe distance. When Jesus faced his last few days, his trial, terrible scourging, and crucifixion, most of his disciples fled, like we flee from forest fires. They watched anxiously from a safer distance, as Jesus went through fire for all of us. Jesus had the ability to leave, but he stayed to bear our sins. Like the pine cone opened up for seeds and new life to grow, Jesus was stretched open on the cross to give us new life. When someone is suffering intensely, a natural instinct is to curl up tightly in fetal position. If you have ever seen someone you love like that, you can't ever forget. All other comforts gone, every means of reassurance exhausted except for the ability to feel arms hugging knees, protectively pressed into a tearful face. How painful it must have been for Jesus after being scourged and whipped, then to be stretched wide open, nailed to a cross. When we are in pain, most of us turn inward, focusing on ourselves. Jesus was focused on others, being open and aware of those around him, loving and forgiving as he was suffering. It is significant that it is evergreen trees who have pinecones that are opened up with fire to bring forth new life. Evergreen trees remind us of Jesus love- these trees don't lose their leaves with the seasons, they are always green. Jesus loves is like that.
Jesus is the seed that went through fire for us to give us new life. How thankful we are that he overcame all things, even death, and resurrected for each one of us.
Jesus also stays with us in our personal trials, he is in the fire with us, like he was for Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego (Daniel 3). Maybe you feel like you are in the fire. Ask the Lord in prayer how He is helping you, I bet He can't wait to show you that He is with you, carrying you when you need it. Trust that something new and good will come. Knowing He is with us makes the hard things lose their bitterness.
Some seeds of flowers require the heat, smoke and the charred alkaline remains of a forest fire to grow, like fire poppies, mountain mallows, fireweed, arnica. These flowers are so colorful and beautiful, their petals look like fair wings healing the forest. These seeds can wait for decades before the conditions are right to sprout. That is a really long time to wait! Interestingly, some of the flowers that grow after fires are cooling, soothing medicinal plants you could apply to a burn. God always provides healing and help! His help is always on time. The Lord is faithful to his promises, and out of the ashes he brings forth beauty.
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| Mountain mallows by Heidi Brinkerhoff Rohner |
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| Fireweed |
Some seeds grow best in disturbed soil. Sunflowers love to grow in areas that are disturbed. In our area, after the forest fires, there was danger of flooding. Machinery was brought in to create berms and ditches to contain flooding runoff. Where bulldozers came through, those areas grew a wide path or field of sunflowers the following year. For Jesus, his friends and family, surely it seemed like his death was the end, Jesus had been removed from the land of the living in the most painful way possible. But Jesus resurrection was only a few days away from his crucifixion. Tears were turned to joy that he lives! Does it seem your soil has been bulldozed? There is something special in the works, God turns all things for our good.
Let me finish telling you about the angelica seeds that I mentioned earlier. It is interesting that the Lord loves us and knows what touches our hearts! At the right moments for us individually, He gives us reminders of his love. A couple years ago for my birthday, we walked around a mountain lake, the kids skipped rocks, we enjoyed the sunset, and it was a wonderful evening. With a large family it is hard to get everyone together, and usually at least one or two people are having a rough or grumpy time. It was a rare moment for us to be together, happy, and in a beautiful place. There were some delicate white flowers that were on one side of the lake, they were tall and beautiful, I had to take a few pictures. When I got home and looked them up, I couldn't tell if the white blossoms were angelica or their poisonous look-alike. I forgot about our walk around the lake, and the white flowers as other things came up. The following year, a friend was giving an herb walk at this same lake. I went, and she stopped at the same spot I had taken pictures of the year before to point out the white flowers. She taught us how to tell the difference between the amazing angelica plant and the look-alike- poison hemlock. They were growing close to each other. She pointed out the features that tell them apart- shape of leaves, smell, hair on leaves, color of the stalks. During the Black Plague, a Benedictine monk was given a dream where an angel told him to use this plant to help people with the plague. That is why the plant was named Angelica Archangelica. In Europe, angelica is candied and used to flavor pastries and flavor alcohol, and it is also used medicinally by many. I had completely forgotten about our family's walk around the lake a year before and my desire to learn about the white flowers, until I went back through my pictures, and found the angelica flowers from the year before. The Lord knew the desire of my heart to know about these flowers, and a year later gave me that gift. I was amazed at the Lord's love and goodness to me. I had forgotten, but He hadn't, He remembered me. It spoke right to my heart. He knows our interests and speaks each of our love languages. He speaks your love language. I hope you can see the Lord's individual love for you, and how He knows you so well. He knows every thought, every worry. Even every hair on our heads and every tiny ridge in our fingerprint is loved and known by Him.
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| Angelica Archangelica |
When you are going through a trial, remember the seeds. They teach us how darkness and uncertainty are needed to grow strong roots. The darkness helps us reach for light, for Jesus that is our Light. The seeds teach us about being patient, and having hope and faith when we are in the dark, and discarding the tough shells that keep us from growing. Seeds teach us that Jesus made small things strong, we can grow under pressure. Most important though, seeds remind us of what Jesus went through for each of us. Jesus was scarred for us, went through fire at his crucifixion for us, and resurrected to overcome death for us. All of nature testifies of Christ and praises him!
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