The following devotion was inspired by excerpts taken from a sermon preached by my husband entitled Released (7/2/17).
Reading for today: John 12:23-24
The Bible uses the image of a seed to describe a lot of things. For example, the seeds in the parable of the sower is the Word of God (Mt 13). In the parable of the weeds, the seeds are the followers of God (Mt 13). Jesus compares faith and the kingdom of heaven to a mustard seed (Mt 17 and 13). And in the book of John, Jesus refers to himself as the wheat seed that must die in order to produce a great harvest.
When we talk about seeds sometimes we refer to them as being dead or alive, that is how we describe their potential for growth. When we use the terms dead or alive, we are actually talking about whether or not those seeds are viable.
Take for example the average American watermelon. One healthy watermelon can produce 200 to 800 new seeds. In other words, one viable watermelon seed has the potential to sprout and grow and bear fruit for 200 to 800 more watermelons!
The truth, though, is that in the process of sprouting, a watermelon seed (like any other seed) must “die” or sacrifice itself, in order to become a fruit-bearing plant.
During the last week of Jesus’s life, he explains to the disciples the importance of his upcoming death by comparing himself to a wheat seed. He says in John, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.”
Jesus was the ultimate viable seed. He produced a harvest of many seeds. Through his death and resurrection, he forever shed the binding shell of sin and death, releasing us to also be viable seeds for the kingdom of God. We are not only the fresh produce of Christ’s bountiful harvest, but we are also the viable seeds, ready to bear fruit for God.
This week lets read through those references to seed and learn more about our spiritual growing process.
Dear God, Thank you for planting the seeds of faith and Your Word into me. Lord, make me viable for your kingdom. Show me who I can care for today. Amen.
Day 2 – Matthew 13:1-9; 18-23 (Parable of the sower)
Day 3 – Matthew 13:24-30; 36-43 (Parable of the weeds)
Day 4 – Matthew 13:31-32 (Parable of the mustard seed)
Day 5 – Matthew 17:14-21 (Faith like a mustard seed)
We will have two trays, each with a similar pot of flowers. One flower will receive everything it needs to grow: soil, water, and sunlight. The other flower will be given some of what it needs, but will be hidden from the sunlight.
Yet three days later, as the Sunday morning sun broke through the darkness, look inside the tomb and you will see nothing.
But Jesus took the loaves and the fish and asked the disciples to have the people sit down. He lifted his eyes towards heaven, gave thanks, and distributed the food among the people. And distributed. And distributed. And distributed. Until everyone had eaten to their full. Then he had the disciples gather the leftovers, twelve extra basketfuls.
Day 2 – 
The interesting thing about despair, though, is that it has the potential to be not an end, but a beginning. It has the potential, if you let it, to be the beginning of your search to find God and to cry out for his merciful, necessary grace. What else can we do, when we find ourselves with nothing, but to seek help from the only one who can give it.
Cup Overflowing 