Have you ever planted a garden? You plant the seeds, you water the seeds, in a few weeks you will start to see a few sprouts, then it grows into a plant and eventually after about 60-80 days you start to have fruit and vegetables. You can see the success of your work.
But, have you ever planted a tree? You plant it, you water, and you check it every day, but after 60 – 80 days, it looks the same. You might wonder if it’s growing and why don’t you have fruit yet. The simple fact is that trees take longer to grow and develop than vegetables.
We planted an orange tree about 2 months ago. So far, it looks the same as when we planted it. But underground, its roots are developing and slowly it will begin to grow.
In our Christian life, and especially as moms, we will often plant seeds of faith and truth in our children, we nurture them daily, and feel like all our efforts are not working. What we miss at the moment is that we can’t see the slow growth or it’s not happening as quickly as we would like and we want to quit.
But Paul has simple advice for us today:
“Let’s not be weary in doing good, for we will reap in due season if we don’t give up.”
Galatians 6:9
Every day of mothering is different. It’s easy to get discouraged and feel you are not making a difference. But remember, our job isn’t make the seeds we plan grow (that’s God’s part). Our part is to be faithful in teaching our kids.
If you are tired today or you don’t feel like your hard work is making a difference, don’t give up. Some lessons in faith and truth take longer to develop (maybe even years or decades). If we continue doing what is right, fruit of spirit will grow within our children in time.
