Tag: seed

God Doesn’t Waste

I love that God is never wasteful. Everything he does is purposeful and not by coincidence or accident. My pastor preached on planting seeds this weekend. Everything begins as a seed and nothing happens until that seed is planted. What I plant is what I will reap. I always reap in a different season than I sow. I must be patient and not give up. Each one of these points and many more was given in Pastor Chad Herndon’s sermon on Sunday 5/3/20 at New Song United Methodist Church. You can find his sermon if you are interested at newsongumc.org. This is not a plug for my church but I did not want to take credit for writing something that was not mine. God does not let anything go to waste. We just don’t always have our eyes set on him and we waste what he is trying to teach us.

I am struggling this week. I don’t have any energy. I don’t feel good, I’ve had a migraine since last week that comes and goes. One day on and one day off. I’m just feeling uncomfortable in my skin. Should I blog? I don’t think I really have anything to say. I really never know what I’m going to type until I sit here in front of this keyboard. Who am I doing this for? I don’t really know. I keep questioning God as to what my purpose is. What do you have for me Lord? I feel a longing in my soul that I am meant for more. If you’ve read my last couple of blogs you know I’ve been reading Psalms and I’m still reading Psalms. -The land yields its harvest; God, our God, blesses us. Psalm 67:6 – That was part of the scripture I read today. Look at God not being wasteful. Leading me right back to Sunday and Pastor Chad and planting seeds. I want what I want and I want it now. I’m going to plant these seeds and by tomorrow or at the latest next week I’m going to be ready to harvest my crop. Well, we all know if you plant any type of vegetable or crop that’s laughable. God may choose to do that but most likely he is going to prepare you, bring you through the growing process. Let you be watered and let the Son shine down on you. Let you go through some thunderstorms and get whipped around a bit so your roots grow strong in the earth and the weeds don’t overcome you. Only God knows when your roots are strong enough to do what he needs you to do. Waiting patiently is not easy to do but waiting patiently and continuing to pursue God on a daily basis is hard for me. He’s not just going to drop something in my lap because I’ve waited quietly. He needs me to pursue him and get closer to him. I don’t know about anyone else but that is a struggle for me. There are so many distractions that can easily take place of talking to God. Watching TV, listening to Audible, sleeping, Social Media and the list goes on.

I used to question how in the world the Israelites could walk around in the desert for 40 years. I don’t question that anymore. Just think if they had TV or social media. They might still be walking. I think I’ve been walking around in the desert for about 45. I just keep circling that mountain. I do know this. I have not ever lost my faith. I may have wondered in the desert and circled the mountain but God has never walked away. He is always right where I left him. God is good and God is faithful. I know that with all the breath in my body. I need to stop trying to harvest what is not ready. I need to pursue God with a fever and make sure I am available. Make sure I am not wasting what he is trying to teach me or show me. Show up for church (on line) take time to talk to God every day, plug in where I can during the rest of this quarantine.

This has been a difficult time for all of us. Being quarantined, those of us who have addictions and are finding different ways to cope are struggling. If you’ve lost your job this is a very frightening time. If you’ve lost a loved one this is a time of mourning and it has to be done in such a lonely way. You can’t be surrounded by your friends and family. This time of uncertainty can either draw you closer or push you apart. This needs to be a time when we draw together and love those around us. As I was writing this, a song came on by Maren Morris. The Bones. It love what its saying. -When the bones are good, the rest don’t matter -yeah, the paint could peel, the glass could shatter -Let it rain ’cause you and I remain the same -When there ain’t a crack in the foundation -Baby, I know any storm we’re facing -Will blow right over while we stay put -The house don’t fall when the bones are good

If we have good bones, a good foundation, strong roots we can stay put. It might be uncomfortable. It might not be where you saw yourself. Plant your seeds, be patient and don’t give up. Remember you always reap what you sow in a different season. Make God your bones, your foundation, your roots and he’ll hold you up for the harvest. God is never wasteful so don’t waste his goodness.

Credit to Pastor Chad: Seed references from 5/3/20 Sermon

His Gift

It’s been a little over two weeks since my Dad passed. He passed away on August 23rd. I miss him very much but the funeral wasn’t as much of a funeral as it was a call to know the Lord. That’s exactly what my Dad would have wanted. Several people stood up to speak about him and how he had touched their lives and how God had come into their life through my Dad. There was laughter and there was tears. My Cousin Bryan spoke and my nephew Nick spoke. They led the service. They both did an amazing job. If you walked in there unsure of who God is and how much he loves you, you walked out knowing the truth. (If you were listening)

The Gospel was spoken on August 31, 2019 at 2:00 PM. It was a celebration of my Dads life and a dedication to the man he was. That was the overwhelming theme. I never heard my Dad or anyone that knew my Dad say he was afraid to talk about the Lord no matter where he was or who he was with. That was who he was and I hope is what everyone that walked out of there will remember about him. He loved Jesus. All you had to do was be listening and have your heart open that day and you could have received the greatest gift you will receive in a lifetime. The gift of Jesus. The gift of eternal life. The gift of being saved. Not by anything that you or I could do. Not by trying super hard or finally earning the right to have him give you that gift but by believing. God loves you as you are, where you are and you just have to accept him and know that he died for you on the cross and shed his blood for you as a sacrifice to wash you clean of your sins. He was buried and rose three days later and ascended into heaven where he sits at the right hand of God where you will see him and live there eternally when you die if you accept him. If you didn’t know that before you walked into Monaghan’s Funeral Home you should have known it when you left. That was my Dads parting gift to all that gathered there that day. I know seeds were planted and they will just need to be watered by the next gardener God puts in the path of those open hearts.

You don’t always get to see the seed you planted flourish in the spiritual world. Sometimes you might not even know that you actually planted a seed. I was so blessed that day to meet a man that I had heard about through the years. Winston Parker. I met him his wife and daughter. This man, if I have the story right, had asked my parents to come to church on many occasions when they were young and I think living the young fun life. I think it may have taken quite a few invites for them to finally go. This man was the reason my Dad accepted Christ. How amazing is that!!! What an awesome sight for him to see. That 50ish years ago he invited a couple to church and they finally came probably to get this guy off their back so he would leave them alone and this is what came of that. That makes me want to shout with joy! Through him Christ has been shared in countless places, throughout the world and will be shared down through generations to come. What a legacy for Winston and what a legacy for my Dad. It was an honor to meet him that day. I am so glad he was able to see the fruit of God’s good work working through him. So the lesson here is, never stop asking. Maybe that friend or couple or co-worker will come to church with you just to get you to stop asking. Maybe that’s all it will take.

What a life my Dad had and how blessed am I to be a part of it. To have been able to call him Dad. It wasn’t a walk in the park for him. He wasn’t a man without faults. There isn’t a man without faults but he did a great thing. He shared this great gift that is more valuable than all the riches in the world. Thank you Dad. You are still my hero. I will see you again and if there’s a DVD player in heaven we can watch The Storm of The Century if we can get God to make it snow. Maybe they have streaming up there. Haha, I’m sure there will be better things to do than watch movies.

My Dad, My Hero