Hello Vanna!
This week, I have been confronted with the undeniable fact that fall is just around the corner. Evidence is springing up everywhere. This leaves me feeling a little ambivalent. I love the changing of the seasons, and I’m excited that autumn is coming soon. I, however, admit that I felt incredibly (ridiculously) sad as I ate the last of the summer’s homegrown tomatoes.
The kind lady who had given the tomatoes to us had diligently labored to grow them and had gifted them to us as an act of love. She had frst planted the seeds in her garden. There, they received adequate care, water, and light, enabling them to sprout from the ground. They continued to grow and draw on the rich, organic nutrients in the soil until they finally matured enough to produce delectable fruit.
The picture of a lovingly tended seed growing into a fruit producing plant is a good picture of the Christian life. God deposits his children in the rich soil of his church. He places a seed (a measure) of faith within each one (Romans 12:3). Planted in God’s garden, the seed of faith is nourished by God’s Word, drenched in living water, and Jesus, the Light of the World, shines on it until faith springs to life, producing the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
Just as the kind lady lovingly offered part of her tomato crop as a gift to our family, a kind God lovingly offers part of his eternal crop as a gift to the Vanna family. He has planted precious, treasured children and youth among us. He has diligently labored to grow and mature them. Now, it is time for the harvest.
On October 5th, I will teach a confirmation class for eleven to seventeen year olds. We will discuss orthodox Christian doctrine, spiritual disciplines, and the life of discipleship. Participants will have the opportunity to openly ask hard questions, to honestly express their thoughts, and to wrestle with the issues currently on their minds. Participants are mature enough to fully understand the Gospel and respond to it, so they will be given the opportunity to confirm their faith by personally professing Christ as their Lord and Savior. On October 6th, our worship service will be a confirmation celebration.
Parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncles, please encourage your family members to participate. Everyone, please pray daily for this class. It is my hope and belief that the Holy Spirit will work in such a way that an abundant crop is gathered from the good soil at Vanna UMC.
Sowing and growing in God’s garden,
Lacey
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