I haven’t been gardening for very long.
I discovered the joy of gardening just last year when my mother came to Austria to help me before the birth of my daughter. For as long back as I can remember, my mother has been partial to fruit trees. She spent many hours in our garden pulling out weeds, mowing the lawn, planting saplings, and building brick tree rings. I, on the other hand, had my eye on a couple of clematises – a fast-growing climber that produces the most gorgeous colored flowers.
The fruit-bearing trees, as expected, did not bear many fruits this year as it takes about 3-5 years to reach maturity. The clematises were what held my interest. I started every morning this summer going out to the garden to see just how much they had grown in the space of a day. They never failed to impress. Every day I saw them grow a little more and my heart about burst with joy at the first flower I saw.
While the clematises were in full bloom, Anna, my daughter, had just turned one. Every day she crossed new milestones and learned new skills. When she took a while to master a skill, I watched like a hawk to see if she was on schedule. From grabbing for things to rolling over, starting solid foods, from crawling to walking and then running – each milestone she crossed filled my heart with joy and gratitude.
Growth is an indication of life. The natural inclination of every living thing is to grow. So what does it say about my spiritual life if I see no indication of growth in a given time frame? As wonderful as Anna is as a baby, it would pain my husband and me greatly she remained the same year after year. This is universally true for all good parents. How then can we assume that God would be satisfied to see us in the same stage of spiritual development month after month and year after year?
1 Peter 2:2 exhorts, “like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation“. Often I am disheartened when I see no visible progress in my spiritual life. I wonder if all the “work” I put in will help achieve the level I aspire to be in Christ. I am guilty of giving it my all for a short while and seeing no visible result, I tend to give up in despair when the goal is still far off. However, I am growing to learn that spiritual growth requires consistent self-denial and persistent dedication – especially when I do not feel like it.
When I cook for my family, I aim to produce nutritious meals that are health-giving. When my children pull a face at the vegetables plated before them, I explain to them why it is important and try to develop in them a taste for healthy food. I do not teach my children to grow. I know that as they eat the food given to them, it results in slow but steady growth. In the same way, I cannot will myself to grow spiritually. My responsibility is to consistently feed on the Word of God. As Mark 4:26-27 says, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.“
God is far more faithful than I am as a mother in providing me with food to nourish my soul each day. He does that through His Word. “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
Remember those fruit trees I told you my mother was partial towards? Their growth is slow and often goes unnoticed. What we do not see is what is happening beneath the soil – they grow long roots that find water to keep them nourished even during a drought. When the time is right, they will reach maturity and produce an abundant harvest. This is not unlike a man who spends time practicing the vital spiritual discipline of “ingesting” God’s Word and meditating on them. In this manner, he will be “like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not wither” (Psalm 1:3).
In the words of J.C. Ryle, “Gradual growth in grace, growth in knowledge, growth in faith, growth in love, growth in holiness, growth in humility, growth in spiritual-mindedness – all this I see clearly taught and urged in Scripture, and clearly exemplified in the lives of many of God’s saints. But sudden, instantaneous leaps from conversion to consecration I fail to see in the Bible.”
Dear friend, it is as simple as this – read your Bible. Don’t complain that God hasn’t spoken to you when your Bible is somewhere on a high shelf collecting dust. Let us yearn anew every day to grow in the grace and the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Nothing else we aspire towards is going to produce eternal results.
According to John 15:5, no man who has the capacity to do anything for God by his own strength. “Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” Bearing this in mind, let us ask God for the grace to be disciplined in our quest for holiness. May our lives reflect the single-minded pursuit of becoming more like Christ with each passing day.
27 comments
Amen, thank you so much, and always for blessing me with your post.
I love this, and it is so relatable and practical.
We do not jump the level into growth spiritually, it is a gradual process; thus we must be patient.
I absolutely love this! And the analogy of our children’s growth related to how we grow spiritually. Our walk with God and our growth in Him all comes back to how much we feed on His Word and seek Him in prayer. Thank you so much for this post, sweet sister! Just what I needed today!! Blessings! 💗
This is a wonderful post! I love your insight! =)
You painted a lovely picture of growing in Christ with your words. I loved the analogy. Just like we feed, water and care for a plant or child, we must nourish our faith to make it grow. Thanks for sharing.
So thought-provoking! I love how you compared a baby staying the same and the way God wants us to grow! Thank you for this post!
You’re absolutely right. We were meant to grow.
People are always singing about how much they want you to stay the same and never change because you’re perfect just the way you are. And it always makes me laugh. For one thing, it’s impossible, we all change one way or another. And for another thing, we are made to grow and change. If we love someone we should be excited about witnessing their development. Just like God enjoys watching us grow into our full potential in Him.
Amen I really enjoyed what you had to share! I especially liked when you said growth is an indication of life. So true!
A wonderful post on growth in the Lord. I especially love thinking about the fruit trees. Their growth and change and the producing of fruit may seem slow to our eyes – yet they are growing and at some point much fruit bursts forth. We are like that too – sometimes we think not much has happened in us, but it has. Love your writing.
You are so right when we are staying plugged in and reading the Word all the time we grow. And it makes me realise how imperative growth in every area is necessary.
What an inspiring post and I love the gentle sound of your voice. Growth is lifelong and we must be teachable especially spiritually!
What a kind thing to say! God bless you, Mary.
I LOVED how you pieced this post together! There have been so many times I told my hubby, I don’t know how I got from there to here, BUT GOD does. Day after day, month after month, of walking with Jesus, getting into His Word and yielding to Him the best I could and somehow HE grew me. Love this post SO much!
I tell my husband the exact thing very often. 🙂
How God tends to us! He is a good Farmer. 🙂
Love this! Giving ourselves spiritual food just like we give ourselves actual food is so important.
This is so true! My husband once said, “That’s why the Bible is called your ‘Daily Bread’- you’re supposed to eat it every day.” It’s so easy to forget how truly necessary reading the Bible is for spiritual growth. Thank you for the reminder!
Yes so often we are impatient and want the instant result – thank God, He is patient with us!
Oh, thank God indeed!
Your articles are always such a blessing! This morning, as I was starting the day with a Bible reading, I prayed first that God would help me to maintain focus. My mind starts going in the morning with thinking about all of the tasks ahead in the day. I decided to pray for the peace to focus on His Word. I think I’ll continue to start with prayer for focus. You are so right about our daily need for spiritual food for our continued growth!
So glad you found this useful, Teresa. Thank you for your kind words. Praise God!
I remember a long time ago someone asking me if inwas in the Word everyday. Insaid no and they were just like you poor thing. This last year of being consistent in my reading, I have gone from milk to meat in my studies and infeel like I have benefited so much from it. Now, I know why they were so sad for me that I wasn’t in the Word everyday. It’s so important to our spiritual growth. I wish I had started sooner, but I am grateful that I finally got on board with this truth.
Beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thank you for keeping it direct and sweet, don’t keep your bible on a shelf and then complain that God doesn’t speak to you. You nailed it!
Wow, Evangeline! Such a powerful analogy of providing what your children need rather than teaching them how to grow. I love it and see that we have been given all we need to grow, we just have to show up to the table and partake.
I love this! It’s so simple–just read your Bible. Why do we insist on making spiritual growth so complicated?
I LOVE reading your posts! Especially this one. Thanks for the reminder that “In the same way, I cannot will myself to grow spiritually. My responsibility is to consistently feed on the Word of God.” Amen!
I love to grow foods in our garden. God has spoken to me so many times out there.
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