I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6
The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride. Ecclesiastes 7:8
When I went out with the dogs this morning, I noticed how beautiful the morning glories have grown around my lamp post. I started these lovelies from seeds way back in March, and it took the longest time for them to get going. Even up until the middle of July, they still looked spindly and I had almost given up any hope of flowers. Then all of the sudden, with the late July rains and some warm weather, they simply exploded. We will enjoy their bright pink blossoms until the first hard frost.
Last week, my daughter Sophie and I attended the funeral of our beloved friend, and Sophie’s piano teacher, Marilyn. Sophie only took piano lessons for a couple of years, and then the demands of teenage life, school, sports and a job made it hard for her to find the time to continue.
Marilyn, however, had planted musical seeds in Sophie that have been germinating and growing. Unbeknownst to either one of them, in the months that Marilyn was her weakest, Sophie would sit down at the piano almost daily and play for an hour or so. Sometimes she would practice a song that she and Marilyn had worked on together, and sometimes she would try something new and work at it until she could play it through.
Before she died, I sent Marilyn a note telling her that the good work that she started in Sophie, although she was not able to hear it for herself, was sprouting new growth. I pray that it will continue to grow. It is the way that Marilyn will live on in our lives.
We don’t always get to see the results of the seeds that we plant. But it is our job to plant the seeds nevertheless, when we share our faith, our talents, and our stories with the people around us. It is by God’s grace that the seeds sprout and grow, that the good work that is started will come to completion.
Thanks be to God!
