Know the Seed, Sow the Seed

Let’s take this back to elementary school when, as bright-eyed children, we’d gather around our teacher in a circle for story time. The story of the day happens to be Jack and the Beanstalk, a classic fable with many iterations, but the story is all the same. You remember the story right? Once upon a time there lived young Jack and his widowed mother on a small farm in the country. They were hard workers and good with their hands, but no matter how long they plowed in the fields they were still poor. With barely enough money to stay alive, Jack’s mother makes the decision that they will have to sell their only cow to get money. She sends Jack into town to catch a hefty price, but on his way he meets an old man. The man looking around cautiously shows Jack three magic beans. He tells him they will practically grow overnight and he will trade them for the cow. Before you know it Jack has taken the bargain and returns to his mother in excitement. Jack, proud of this opportunity, shows his mother the beans, but she is furious and throws the beans out. They each go to bed upset and hungry.

Yet, overnight those beans grow into a beanstalk that reaches the sky. His mother is surprised by the occurrence, but Jack believed in the beans all along. He eagerly climbs the beanstalk and discovers a grand house belonging to an evil giant and his wife who have been stealing riches for themselves. Being nimble and quick, Jack is not only able to take some riches for himself, but rid the world of the dangerous giants as well. He also saves a sentient harp and a golden goose from the giant’s clutches. Jack, his mother, the goose, and the harp then all live happily ever after, not having to worry about anything ever again. None of that would have happened though if Jack hadn’t believed in those seeds. There was something great hidden in those seeds — a harvest of wealth and riches that Jack and his family were able to reap.

Did you know that when you sow your own seed, God has the same desires for you? He designed the seed as a mode of transportation for abundance to manifest in your life. He desires to give you more than enough, but you can’t let the size of the seed intimidate you and stop you from sowing. We’re quick to put money, time, and energy into things that will not harvest into something substantial or lasting. Think about Jack’s mom. She was about to sell their only cow for a bit of change that would have lasted them only who knows how long and wouldn’t have given them back nearly enough. Yet Jack saw different with the seeds. The same is true with your own seeds that you sow. You have to know your seed and recognize the potential in the seed. You have to know the weight it carries despite the size it may be. Every harvest has always started with a seed, no matter how small. How else would grand oak trees tower over us or acres of crops flourish every year? Do you think farmers are second guessing the seeds they put in the ground? Certainly not! So why are you? You can’t be running away from an opportunity to sow when it arises because that means you either don’t trust the soil, or you don’t trust the seed you’re about to sow. Just because you can’t see the harvest doesn’t mean it’s not there. When you sow a seed, it takes on a different form. It transforms and manifests in your life for the better. Don’t cut off your seed and don’t put limitations on it simply because the harvest is not in your sight. The seed that you sow is heavy. You have to know that it is heavy and that it is always going to produce. Always remember:

Although a seed leaves your hand, it never leaves your life. -Dr. Jeffrey G. Phillips