I love the forest – It’s peaceful and quiet and the smell of flowers and pine trees bring back many childhood memories for me. These days I often take my children to the forest to run and climb trees. We play and swim in the mountain streams. It’s one of my favourite places to be. I feel a sense of home when I am in the forest.
The other day, my son and I were admiring the trees and flowers in our garden and my son asked me to explain how a seed grows into a flower or tree. I had to go do some research as my school days are a bit of a blur but once I had the correct info I was able to sit and explain the amazing processes required in order for that seed to become a beautiful, flower-bearing plant.
Here’s what I found…
Seeds have a hard shell and underneath that hard shell is everything it needs to become all that it was made to be.
The problem is this – if the seed just sits there in the bag or on the table, it will stay a seed and will never achieve its full potential. Even if you put that seed into the dirt it will not grow if it does not receive water and light.
For the seed to begin its journey it must first be placed in dirt, it then needs to be given the sufficient light and water it needs in order for the hard shell of the seed to be softened which in turn makes it possible for the first root to break through. That first root enables the seed to take in extra water and nutrients from the earth which leads to a stem with curled leaves to break through the top layer of dirt. With the sun shining on the leaves, the stem and leaves begin to grow. The leaves convert the energy from the sun into the food needed by the plant for growth. Finally, the plant will be fully grown with beautiful flowers.
Water and light
I found something very interesting regarding light and water while I was reading through the Bible and it really blew my mind. Jesus claimed to be the light of the world and the living water.
Check out these profound verses.
John 8:12 – Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 4:14 – Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.”
It’s easy to see the beautiful correlation between how seeds grow and how we would grow if we had the correct source of nutrition and the correct understanding of what is needed to be all we were made to be. You see, I used to be a hard seed and I had been lying on a table for many years, then I was put into the dirt but I was wasting my time. Since reading about how seeds grow and reading the verses above, I came to an amazing realization.
The realization.
I am the hard coated seed, and I needed, firstly, the dirt (which I equate to the struggles and heartaches I’ve endured in life) in order for my growth to begin. Hardships in life help us grow. Without dirt, we would never even notice our need for water and light.
Secondly I needed Jesus because he said he was the light of the world and the source of living water. Once I found Jesus, things began to change and my roots began to grow. As I have grown I have come to rely on Jesus as my source of growth and as my source of nutrition. He alone sustains me and just like a flower, if either the light or the water were to stop, so would my growth and I would eventually wither up and die.
As time passes and if the water and light source is reliably constant, we will see our true potential fulfilled.
It’s only natural to conclude that maybe it’s time for us to allow the dirt of our lives to give us the ground we need in order to grow, but to also keep in mind that it’s the water and the light that will change us and allow us to fulfill our true potential.
If you feel your potential and purpose is not being fully realized, maybe it’s because you are lacking the source of light and water. If you would like to find your source and become all you were made to be, then I encourage you to either click on the pop-up or the link below.
Let your growth begin… You will not regret it.