Time-lapse videos of plants growing and producing flowers are fascinating to observe. As if by magic, over the course of a number of seconds, the bulb grows until it bursts into life, unfolding its delicate petals. Yet, in real life, the method takes for much longer. If we ventured outside every day to envision on the expansion of flowers or vegetables, we’d eventually notice indications of growth, but much of it’s going to be indiscernible–we cannot see the seed’s production of a root system or the intricate inner workings of the plant. And its physical growth above the soil will not be all the time overt. Â
A fall harvest cannot come without the period of waiting for plants to grow to maturity and bear fruit. If we tried to skip all of the steps of planting, watering, weeding, and waiting, we’d not have anything but a handful of seeds. God could have made it in order that nature routinely produced great fields of food, ripe and able to eat. But he didn’t, and that could be a lesson we are able to learn from: growth (and harvest) takes time. Â
Scripture tells us that we are supposed to bear spiritual fruit as Christ’s disciples (John 15:5, 8; Colossians 1:10). This is produced in us through the Holy Spirit but additionally requires us to undergo His work (Galatians 5:22-23). At salvation, we don’t grow to be immediately patient, loving, or kind. Rather, the Holy Spirit begins to work, cultivating these attitudes in our lives, which eventually bear fruit. Â
Growth is significant to the Christian life, and as such, we must learn the worth of being patient in the method. Sometimes the best fruit will come through the small, every day advances in Christlikeness, which could be indiscernible to us and others. However, after we take the long view of our discipleship, knowing we’re regularly moving toward the longer term glory of being conformed to the image of Jesus, we’ll higher discern God’s patient work in us (Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:18).   Â
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/Mikhail Azarov
