Lessons From a Scarecrow - Germination and the Nature of Seeds

1 Corinthians 3:6 (NIV)

I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.

It has been fun to watch the seeds that were planted as they poke their little sprouts through the soil.  The fun will continue as we watch them mature and get bigger each day and then start to bear fruit.  Maybe I will get to sample some of the veggies?

It is truly a marvelous process of germination that God has created. During germination, water diffuses through the seed coats into the embryo, which has been almost completely dry during a period of dormancy.  The water causes a swelling of the seed; the swelling is often so great that the seed coat is ruptured. 

Some seeds need to be exposed to fire, we must endure trial—sometimes even fiery ones—throughout our lives. When a seed is exposed to fire, extreme heat or a period of freezing temperatures, a chemical change occurs, triggering the seed to grow.

In the same way, trials trigger us to grow. God uses problems, troubles and afflictions to strengthen His begotten children—to cause us to learn, change, grow, endure and overcome.

Some seeds must be exposed to complete darkness for germination to occur. Likewise, we sometimes go through periods of darkness—when life seems bleak and all hope has faded.

The purpose of every seed is to reproduce its own kind. Each seed has the potential to grow into a new, fully mature plant. In the same way, God is reproducing His “own kind” through man. As His “firstfruits,” God gave us the “seed” of His Spirit, with the potential to become like Him—having perfect character.

The next time you do a little planting in your garden or see a farmer planting his field, remember the example God has given us in the little seed!

Dear Lord, help us remember the lessons we learned from the Seed.  Help us to bear the fruit that we should as Christians. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.