Fertilizer

I was fertilizing my lawn yesterday, taking advantage of one of the few dry days this April.  I didn't think a lot about it.  I just knew I wanted to get the fertilizer down before the rain returned so it could soak deep into the ground.  I had previously replanted seed in some bare spots and thin patches and they were starting to fill in but there was still a ways to go.   This morning after a conversation in the coffee house window I realized that a lot of ministry was just like that--fertilizing seed that was planted a while ago.  We just came through Easter and at the end of the services gave away a number of copies of Lee Strobel's book, The Case for Easter.  And it hit me that what we had done in giving those books away to any seeker who asked for one was fertilize the seed that we hoped was planted that morning in worship, in the preaching of the word, in an atmosphere of love encountered.  We gave the book hoping that individuals who visited might choose to look more closely at the resurrection and the truths behind it.   Why did I get to thinking about fertilizer this morning?  Because one of those individuals we gave a book to was at my table, sharing with me how he had read it and passed it on to another.  Sharing how the book helped fertilize the seed, the Easter event.    Can you think of any seed that you have planted recently that could use a little fertilizer?  A note in the mail, a simple book, a CD, a phone call, a few moments in prayer.  Not for harvest.  But to fertilize the seed planted.   We cast seed, now it's time for the fertilizer.    The Man in the Window