“I am God’s field and so are you. You are exactly where you are supposed to be. . . . God knows the lay of the land that makes you you. He is planting seed within you — seeds which will bear internal fruit with eternal value. He knows exactly how to care for you, cultivate you, and grow you.”- Jennifer Dukes Lee
“These things I plan won’t happen right away. Slowly, steadily, surely, the time approaches when the vision will be fulfilled. If it seems slow, do not despair, for these things will surely come to pass. Just be patient! They will not be overdue a single day!”- Habakkuk 2:3 (TLB)
Jennifer Dukes Lee concludes Chapter 3 of Growing Slow as she asserts her belief that God designed us to develop spiritual maturity over time. Because this incremental growth helps to develop habits of obedience, trust, and holiness. For we come into this world as babies. Hence, over time, we learn to trust Jesus- through struggles in the midst of disappointments. Perhaps, Jennifer suggests, “the Farmer who planted seeds within us enjoys the beauty that emerges when we simply grow slow.”
Certainly, the author observes, we’re much more than our stubborn, insecure, or prickly selves. Above all, our souls represent fields that the divine Farmer refuses to give up on. Consequently, Jennifer exhorts, don’t confuse the state of your soul with God’s unrelenting affection to watch you grow. God persistently plants until He finds your good soil. Because that produces a harvest beyond our wildest dreams.
In conclusion, Jennifer explains:
“The harvest beyond our wildest dreams is simply this: the fingerprints of a loving God upon our souls. You and I bear the mark of a God who won’t give up on us. . . .
As long as there is soil, God is always planting. He refuses to see you as anything less than a field worth tending, and he is willing to grow slow with us. This is his outrageous love. . . . Before he grows good things through us, he wants to grow good things in us.”
Today’s question: Do you truly believe God knows the lay of the land? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “The secret to growing slow – waiting”
