Counting it all Joy
James 1:2-3
Last spring I decided to try my hand at starting some vegetable plants indoors. They didn’t fare very well. I learned some lessons and I may try again in the future. One mistake I made was the way I positioned the lighting above the starter trays. Once the seeds sprouted, the new shoots made a beeline toward the light, resulting in tall, spindly, weak plants.
The other thing I learned is you have to “harden off” your plants before you put them out permanently. Having been started indoors where they were protected from the elements like winds and beating rains, and also the ups and downs of the temperature in a natural environment, they need to learn how to cope with real life. You have to “teach them” what life outside is like.
Overall, what I came to discover is that those kinds of plants may sprout up in a protected environment, but they don’t mature and become fruitful until they learn to live in the “real world.”
In a sense, we, like plants don’t mature and become fruitful without facing the challenges of the real world. We need trials and faith-testing experiences to become steadfast and mature followers of Christ. So, when those trials come, rejoice – not for the trial itself, but for what the trial will do for you and in you.
