We have received five or six gardening catalogs in the last week. They are full of beautiful photos of tall trees, full shrubs, and other quite happy-looking plants.
Over time, I have purchased many things from these sorts of catalogs. What I have discovered is that the plants that they send don't look like the plants in the photos.
Of course, I understand why they send a two foot tall apple tree instead of a ten foot tall one. However, it takes a long time before any of these plants are close to full grown. I have an apple tree that I planted five years ago. It is probably nine feet tall now, but I still haven't seen an apple from it.
Not only does it take time for these plants to reach a stage where they bear fruit, it takes a lot of care. Maybe there is such a thing as a person with a green thumb, but I think it more likely that those are folks who spend more time weeding, pruning, fertilizing and watering than the rest of us.
Most of life requires time and care to see growth. Whether it is in my own life, or the lives of my children, things don't magically come to maturity on their own. I know that with appropriate care and the investment of time, even two year olds can be raised to an adulthood of service in God's kingdom.
II Corinthians 9:6 "The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. "
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