Christian Living

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Larry Lilly's Letter Tuesday March 27, 2007

A pen pal from Vacaville, California sent a note to me containing the sequence of the growth of bamboo. It is interesting and helpful. Dr. Chen is serving a life sentence and several groups are insistent that he is innocent. I do pray for Ellis and appreciate the articles he sends on occasion. He likes my writing so I conclude that he must have some unusually good qualities.

I have spent a good part of my life impatiently waiting for the Lord to move in miraculous ways in my life. Oh, be sure there have been miracles along the way, with some really super ones. Yet, for what has been many years now I have waited for a stirring of the waters in the church I pastor. Often, on a Sunday evening after service I will go home and actually weep at the apparent barren, nothing happened day.

The writing ministry has been stuck at about the same level for a couple of years, and I thought that surely by now, the world would be beating a path to my door to pay homage.

On weekdays I often weep at the apparent lack of growth in my personal life. At my age I should be a 'spiritual giant' and I find it harder each year to face the reality of my Pigmy status. Please get me right, I have a good self image and comparatively, I am much better than most people, but I just do not seem to be getting more like Jesus.

Even the Apostle Paul talked about the mundane nature of serving the Lord when he wrote in Galatians 6:9,

"And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not."

The bamboo piece sent by Dr. Chen details the bamboo process. Malaysian farmers plant a bamboo seed, water and fertilize it the first year. The second year they repeat the watering and fertilizing. Same process the third and fourth year. In the fifth year the bamboo seed still is in the ground and nothing visible has happened. The farmers go ahead and repeat the process of watering and fertilizing. Suddenly, in 30 days the bamboo shoots up to 90 feet!! This apparently worthless seed has now grown, in 30 days, to the height of a nine story building!!

I am certain that Paul has this concept in mind when he encouraged the Galatians to simply keep at it, knowing in God's time the harvest will come.

We humans seem to need to be able to 'see' results and to see them near instantly and if we do not, we give up and try something or someplace else. The Bible really teaches us to patiently do as we are instructed, plowing, sowing, watering, fertilizing and the time of reaping will come if we do not give up in despair. I know what Einstein and success gurus have to say, but I am certain Paul trumps them. Hang in there, He is coming.

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2007 Use with with credit.

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