My wife, Patty, loves to plant her flowers. She waters them, cares for them, prunes them, and they grow. Except last summer.
Something was wrong. Her tomato plants just didn’t grow as they had in years past. She was doing the same things, but something just wasn’t right. Yes, we did get a small cop of tomatoes, but not the big harvest that we were expecting.
Patty did many of the same things that she always does. She watered them faithfully. She tilled the soil. She gave them great sunlight. And, she pruned them as needed. So what happened?
Apparently, they were planted too close to our house, and the air wasn’t circulating properly. (I never knew that was even a thing!) Yes, that small thing made a huge difference and hindered their growth.
So, this year, she has planted a new crop of tomato plants in a completely different area of our yard. Lots of sun, lots of water, and lots of air movement. And, yep, we are now seeing signs of growth! I guess sometimes, you just need to move the tomato plants!
The same goes with our faith. Faith isn’t stagnant. We have to water it, weed it, prune it, and give it a growing environment. When your faith isn’t growing, something’s wrong.
As a runner, I see many things in my neighborhood that I would miss by simply driving. One neighbor in particular is always sprinkling, mowing, weeding and feeding his lawn. Guess what? He has the best lawn on the block. The time he takes to make that lawn look amazing is paying off! You really do reap what you sow. (Gal 6:9)
Here are a few ways to help you grow.
- Plant the truth of God’s word in your life.
- Connect with people for support and accountability.
- Serve (be the hands and feet of Jesus and show love to others).
- Experience God through Worship.
I believe that these simple things will help your faith-life grown with the help of the master gardener, Jesus.
Move the Tomato Plants. Go make a difference. Always run by faith.
(special thanks to Betsy Marvin for this blog inspiration)
TommyRunByFaith 