Growing up Strong!

In the years I was growing up as a child and a teenager, I remember being at my grandparents house in Portadale Georgia every spring. During these times, we would help my grandfather plow the field. It was a very large patch of ground. Every year he would plant a large crop. I remember helping get rocks out of the field. I could never understand how that every year, we would get a large pile of rocks out. Where did they come from?

After the ground was plowed up, we would begin to make row. My grandfather would take a stick and put it into the ground on each end and then pull a string between each stick. This was setup as a guide to help keep the rows straight. The next step that we would do, was to begin planting the seeds. Until I was older, I was not allowed to plant the seed. I was only allowed to cover up the seed.

Weeks would pass by and I found myself out in that garden, helping to pull out some weeds. Making sure that only the seeds were growing inside of the rows. I remember as the plants begin to grow, something else that my grandfather would do, and that is take a plow and break up the ground on both sides of the now growing seeds. I never understood until later why this was done. It was to break up the ground, so that the roots could grow freely and the plant could sprout out.

That hard work paid off. When harvest came, we were able to go into the field and get okra, corn, peanuts, potatoes. carrots, pinto beans, and many other vegetables. I remember so many times during the harvest, we would eat only the foods that came from the garden. Oh my goodness, it was so good. Fresh veggies from the garden will always be my favorite!

When I begin reaching for souls. I learned and now understand what Jesus was saying. . .

Mark 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.

When you begin to plant seeds into a soul. Many times you have to dig up those rocks. And you might not see them on the outside all the time. It might even take years to get some to come to the surface. But when they do, you need to get them out of that ground. Then you will have to prepare the ground to receive the seed. Plow that ground up, so that the soil is not hard, but ready to receive roots from a newly planted seed. And we still have to pull out those weeds that try to choke out those seeds we planted. But once we do all of that work, then the seed that has been planted in good ground will bring forth the increase that we are looking for. What I am saying is this. . . to win a soul. . . it will take time. It is not an over night thing. Sometimes it takes years to build a person until they can stand on their own and walk in a way that produces faith in others.

So I am saying this . . . Do not give up on that person you have planted seed into. Do not push that person to the side, just because they do not get it. Just because they do not understand the passion that you have does not mean that they can not get it. It just might take them a little while longer.

So keep pressing!

Keep planting!

Keep watering!

Keep pulling those rocks and weeds out!

Don’t give up on your loved one!