Rooted Faith

What if we stopped bragging about what we have, in pursuit of what God has for us?

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I asked a few of my friends if they knew what the plant in the picture, above was.

Not one of them knew. Which gave me confirmation for this message.

In today's world, we all need a little faith. More than what we had yesterday, and definitely more tomorrow than what we have today. But we need more than "a little."

Ask any Christian, "How much faith do you need?" And I'm almost confident, many of us will respond saying, "Faith the size of a mustard seed."

I don't know how to properly spell the sound of a buzzer... but "EEEHHHHHHHRRRT".

Wrong! Well... Kind of...

Yes, Matthew 17:20.. in the words of Jesus, Himself, says "If you even have faith the size of a mustard seed" you could move a mountain. Let's talk about this.

Here is a mustard seed...

I know... this picture is a little grainy (that's a seed joke), but you get what I'm saying.

THIS... Ladies and gentlemen, is a mustard seed. And yes, one of these little babies can move a mountain. But let me ask you something... When was the last time you tried to move a mountain? When was the last time you took that little bitty piece of faith of yours and actually moved the impossible?

I don't mean, "looking back, look what God did." I mean, in the moment, when was the last time you intentionally took a little bit of faith and felt it was "enough" to handle the challenge in front of you? When was the last time you were confident in a "little"?

Take a moment... Go ahead... Stew on that while we talk about something else, really quick.

Moving a mountain sounds great, doesn't it? Man... this little seed of mine can move a mountain... But wait... "a" mountain? That's like... That's just one. One... Mountain.

The Rocky Mountains are the largest group of mountains in the United States. I researched it a little and found out that it isn't one "single" stretch of mountains, but is actually a collection of over 100 mountain ranges. The states that make up the Rocky Mountains are Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, and Wyoming. It even trickles into the the tips of Arizona and New Mexico.

Colorado, alone, has over 2,000 mountains of the Range - by itself.

Take all that information and look at your seed. Even if that one seed was "enough", it wouldn't sustain you.

Taking out one of the mountains in a range, or as we just learned - set of ranges, would not make a dent in the capacity of the Rocky Mountains. It would only "move" one mountain.

One mountain.. Of thousands.

Man.. That means you'd have to invest that one seed carefully. I mean, what if the next mountain is bigger.. What if a few years from now there are five mountains at once to decide between. That thought process can trigger a crippling fear.

Fear... The antithesis of faith.

Actually, is fear the reason we brag about the seed instead of actually planting it.

That's a word in a word... And y'all know I get real "

Ooohhh, Something shiny" in a heartbeart.

But please know "Fear of the Harvest" is coming...

I firmly believe God did not intend for His children to brag about one seed. Not with all He has in stow for us. One seed, from a limitless God?

Honestly... (forgive me for saying this)...

But that's just stupid.

And my Daddy didn't create any stupid kids... Not if we are all created after His likeness.

Anyone whose ever taken a biology class knows that seeds are meant to be planted.

So is your faith.

That seed of faith is meant to be buried in your heart. Nurtured with the Word. Fed with compost and manure... Yep, the stuff that stinks.. The stuff you try to avoid and end up stepping in anyway. The waste that helps you grow, when everything else in your environment is right. Water. Sun light. Soil.

Repeat.

Your seed is meant to manifest in its proper season. Which means you need to plant it before you actually need it.

If I'm hungry, a tomato seed - in seed form - isn't going to do anything for me. But make me angry. I don't know about you, but I get UPSET when i have all but one ingredient when it's time to make dinner. And I'm always missing the key ingredient. It's not like I have brown sugar, but I needed granular sugar. It's like, I need baking powder/soda. The stuff that RISES.

How are you going to RISE to your occasion... with a seed?!

The picture above, scroll back up if you need to, is a mustard plant. Crazy thing is... There are tons of variations of this plant. Each one with its own seed. There's even a mustard TREE!!

Imagine that... a MUSTARD TREE.

What hurts, and I hope this seeps in, is we brag about a seed when maybe - just maybe - we are meant to have gardens... We could be sitting on on Forest of Faith. Fully-matured, planted faith.

And once again, basic biology, plants that have reached their full-maturity create more seeds before they die. So your seed, makes more seeds. And for all the nonbelievers, or immature Christians around us, those seeds are meant to be picked up by others...

We could selfishly be sitting on a seed that holds the keys to freedom for someone else.

Because let's be real... We aren't in the Body of Christ to affect mountains. We're here to impact people. Every move we make has to be beyond the scope of "self."

We hold on to our seed because we aren't mature enough for the dedication it takes to bring it to a harvest. And trust me.... In real life, I do not have a green thumb. It's not because I can't grow plants. But honestly, I don't want the responsibility.

Water it.... Cultivate the soil... Add vitamins... Make sure it gets sun... EVERYDAY?!

It's not happening. I have a full-time job... I'm a single parent... I'm writing this blog.

I got other things that take priority in my life, over tending to a seed and making sure it evolves to becoming a plant without dying halfway through the process.

But... umm... Read that back..

Those are the same excuses we make... I make... When I don't read my Bible everyday. When I seep into depression and have a drink, because pouring into a cup feels easier than pouring into God. We stunt our seed (of faith), because we are selfish.

Does anyone remember the Parable of the Talents? It's in Matthew 25:14-30.

Obviously that's a long one so I won't go in-depth on each line, one-by-one. Long story short, A master gave each of his three servants a quantity of talents. (A talent is a nice sum of money.) To one he gave 5. To another he gave 2. And the third received one. Each of them, except the latter doubled their portion. When the third servant was asked what he did with his portion, he said he buried it because he was fearful of what would happen if he actually did something with it. He thought he would please his master to return to him exactly what he was given. But this was not the result.

The master called him lazy and evil, for not putting in any work that would have caused him to increase what was given to him. Even more, what little he did have was given to the servant who had the most to begin with.

Now I know what you're thinking... But Cherita... He buried the talent and was scolded... Aren't you telling me to "plant my seed"? Yup... Because, check this out... Money is not meant to go into the ground. It's meant to be invested. If you put a quarter into soil, a "quarter tree" does not grow. But if you put a quarter into the bank (in savings)... it would take a long time, but you'd start to get some sort of interest on your twenty-five cents.

Eventually.

Imagine going to heaven, and God asks, "What did you do with that seed of faith I gave you when you were born?" And you go into your spiritual pocket, and pull out that same seed.... Two, three, or four decades after you were saved. Do you think God will be "impressed"?

All those people that you could have ministered to, had you invested your faith into something that would have been a testimony or a miracle. But you drudged through life with your "one mountain" testimony... With a smile on your face.

Or let's make it really real.. Look at the world around us RIGHT NOW.. If you are still holding on to your seed from 2017... Do you really think it's going to sustain you through 2020?

I read a few interesting facts about mustard seeds. I told you this earlier.. But some seeds can yield a variation of flowers.. Others can create trees.. But seeds that are crushed become a condiment.

Yup.. Mustard.

My favorite topping on a hot link. Do you know what it takes to make mustard? A crushed seed, water, vinegar, and "other liquids." (I already told y'all, I love mustard. So I refuse to deep dive what those mystery liquids are.)

But apply this to your faith... Water it down.... Stop reading or having some sort of intake in God's Word everyday. Or read the Bible and create a world where not all of it applies to you. Go ahead.. Water down the Word of God. Then add some vinegar - bitterness, jealously, all the emotions that take your joy away. Add some miscellaneous "other stuff." I.E. The things you find yourself doing instead of being an active part of the Body (EXCUSES). And your little mustard seed of faith, turns into.... MUSTARD.

Think about mustard packets, mustard pumps, or bottles of mustard. (And no.... I'm not getting paid per time I say "mustard.") But even the family size options can only be used by one person.... No matter how big the bottle, only one person benefits from it at one time.

This is us... holding on to one seed.

But what's the point of a seed we are unwilling to plant?

But think of where a flower.. or a tree... When those seeds are planted and even one flower blooms, each pod they create houses 8-20 seeds (depending on the type). And there are multiple pods on one plant.

It's up to you... Which would you rather have?

A seed.

A flower.

A tree.

Or mustard?