I can’t break my consistency yet, so this is kind of a “cheat” post. It’s a continuation of my thoughts, from yesterday, that I shared with a couple of friends.
I think it is so important that we as parents learn to rest in the finished work of the Lord, (The principle of Christian character through labor 🙂 and not continually strive to build greatness through the flesh. I see far too many hs moms doing this. (We all tend too. We all have external, and perhaps remaining internal, pressures to do so.) Maybe it’s driven home with me because a friend once told me about what she saw in my life was an oak tree, saying: ‘a blade of grass can spring up to its full potential very quickly, but it is short lived and easily withers. It has shallow roots that cannot support anything larger. A mighty oak has roots that go down very deep. It is not easily shaken. It is strong and firm. It is lasting. Its visible greatness is only as big as the roots that support it. There is as much underneath as there is visible. It reaches far and provides shade and comfort to many.’ I have held onto that word and prayed that God would bring it to pass. Especially when things didn’t seem to be growing quickly in the “visible” realm I tried to remember this. I believe it is really applicable to what God wants to do in all of us, (and relates to the house on the rock and house on the sand.)
In Paul Jehle’s tape on sowing and reaping he talks about planting the seed, and the soil needed to receive it (keeping our children’s hearts soft). He says something about taking a machine gun and blasting the seeds into the (hard) soil – as we sometimes want to/tend to try to do that. If they won’t get it, we’ll MAKE them get it. I think we parents can all relate to times we’ve had like that.
But, I can tend to think that way (wish it would work) with adults sometimes. I think, “Why won’t you just receive this? It will make your life so much easier. It will produce so much better fruit than what you have growing now. This would be so much better for your children.” (usually in relation to them pushing academic content early and fast on young children – or home educating at all). My goal and true desire and ministry though is to plow the soil – I just need to always remember that a plow works better than a machine gun.
This (from Jehle) just really spoke to me (on the plowing before planting) because a verse that I have always thought spoke to my life ministry is Jer. 1:9-10.
Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
The idea is that old patterns have to be torn down before new can be built. We have to plow (dig up, root out) before we can plant. We have to prepare the soil/hearts. Oh yea, that’s called the renewing of the mind.
Remember we haven’t been called to transplant full grown trees, we’ve been called to plow, plant seeds and water them!!!! Then God will bring the increase!!!!!!
