Happy Tuesday! Wow! The butterfly count is 3. This school year has gone by so very fast. My first graders are about to be promoted to second grade.

Anyway, our “baby” is about to graduate high school. I think it is kind of blowing him away that his public school days are almost at an end. Travis is so very ready to graduate. He has “senioritis” really bad. He has one test to take tomorrow, Pre-Calculus (I get a headache just writing that word!) and then one more day and he is finished.

John 12:24 “A grain of wheat must fall to the ground and die to make many seeds. But if it never dies, it remains only a single seed.”

I love how Jesus had the heart of a teacher. He seemed to never pass up the “teachable moment.” The teachable moment is when you are explaining a concept to children and you make a change to explain your point using another explanation or word picture to make clearer the meaning of the concept. Jesus knew two things. First, not only believers were listening to Him speak - those seeking evidence to convict Him were also listening. Next, there were those who were believers and hanging onto each word that the Master was saying. As Jesus spoke to this crowd the Holy Spirit was among the people so Jesus could speak in a language that believers would understand but those who sought to kill Him would have no clue.

Jesus used analogies to explain about the kingdom of God on earth. As Jesus explained the Kingdom of God to these believers He used the truth about seeds to explain what would happen to Him at His crucifixion. In order for the plant to grow, the seed must die in the ground and open up itself to new life. The seed not only grows a new plant, it produces new seeds. A seed that does not multiply is only a seed. But a seed that multiplies grows a garden. Jesus explains that just as the seed must die in order to live again, so must He.

Jesus reached a limited number of people in His three year ministry. But everywhere He went He planted the seeds of His love in those with whom He had relationships. As He planted those seeds in those folks they then told others about what Jesus had done for them. By the time of Jesus’ resurrection those twelve disciples had grown exponentially into the Kingdom of God here on earth. Now if Jesus had just died on the cross and that was the end of the story then salvation would have no meaning whatsoever, His story would have been just that, a really great story. But He did not just die. Jesus came back and gave final instructions. Just as the seed had to die before the plant could grow, Jesus had to die so He could grow in us through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus calls us to not physically die in order to grow, but He does ask us to die to our sinful selves and live again in His love. His instructions are simple: “I love you. Repent and you will be forgiven of your sins. Now, go and tell somebody else what I have done for you.”

God has placed a mighty task before us, but He has also placed His greatest gift in us. He has given us the task of carrying His Son into the world so that we might live in this world, but we do not have to be of this world.

Take joy in the journey. Love you so much, Bruce, Gaylene, Geni and Travis.

Gcapplenotes@aol.com

I am not moved by by what I see. I am not moved by what I feel. I am moved only by what I believe and I believe God.