Planting Seeds

This week was all about the good news.  I got to share a gospel presentation at each Upward Flag Football practice and several of us from Northside got to share the gospel by inviting groups or individuals to join us in watching "The Cross," a video with Billy Graham.

Of all that sharing the gospel, one little third grader stands out in my mind.  We had several kids respond and say they prayed with me to accept Christ and follow Him, but one who did not respond is the one I keep thinking about.

I used the Evangecube to talk with the kids.  It is a cube of connected boxes that each have an image on them that presents the basics of the gospel as you fold and unfold them.  After I was done, this little boy came up to me and said he would like to see one of those pictures again.  I folded and refolded the boxes until we came to the one he wanted to see - it was Jesus hanging on the cross.

He prefaced his questions by saying, "We don't go to church much."  Then he said, "That is Jesus pinned up there like that?"  It was sort of a question and sort of a statement as if he just wanted to make sure.  I said, "Yes, that is Jesus nailed to the cross for our sins."  He looked for a moment then asked, "What are those?" and he pointed to red marks painted on Jesus' picture on the cube to show he had been beaten.  I explained that Jesus had been beaten with a whip before they nailed him to the cross.  Again, he looked at the picture for awhile.  I could tell there were wheels turning in his little mind and the thought occurred to me that he might be hearing this for the very first time.

After a brief pause, he said "Ok" and turned and ran back to practice with his teammates.  It struck me that often we do not get to see a seed of the gospel planted but here, with this boy, I feel I did.  The struggle with planting seeds is that after they are planted, you don't see anything for a while - both in physical seeds and in spiritual seeds.  But because we don't see things, it does not mean they are not worth planting.  There will never be a harvest if we don't plant seeds.  We will never plant seeds without it being an act of faith that somehow, some way, that seed will grow.

This week it seems we did more planting than harvesting, but that is how it should be and that is what we should always be doing.  Thank you to all of you who planted seeds.  Know that whether you see it or not, those seeds are growing.

for the journey...

Tim