Spring and summer bring verdant and colorful growth from the earth. I especially love to see the perennials bloom after being dormant. The lilies push through the ground and display their beauty and fragrance. Although those seeds were planted years ago, they continue to grow and bloom every year.
Although Jesus’s ministry was planted more than two thousand years ago, it continues to grow and thrive. Jesus Christ came to earth and dwelt among us to plant God’s seed on earth. “Immanuel” means “God with us.” Through Christ’s death and resurrection, His word and His seed produced fruit and multiplied, even as it does today. His sacrifice, death to self and sin, allows believing men and women to grow in newness with a life in Christ. We, too, are to die to the old ways and be transformed to the ways of Jesus. Our transformation, our newness, may not have the multiplier effect of Jesus Christ. But we have opportunities every day to make a difference for God. Small deeds can have great impact. We have the opportunity to bring others to Christ. We can demonstrate God’s love in our transformed behavior. Dead to our old ways of doing things, we can pray with and for someone in crisis, share encouragement with a colleague or friend, prepare and share a meal with a neighbor, or volunteer to help others. We, too, can reflect the image of God and produce seeds that will continue to bloom for many seasons to come.