impact growth

Meet half-dried chili pepper.

It was gifted to me on our family vacation by a friendly hand I'd just met.  She wanted me to have it.  I was admiring her vegetable garden & she invited me in for a chat.  Then she handed me this.  She said all the vegetables in her garden were heirloom vegetables: meaning they weren't gentically altered or a hybrid, & came from a hot pepper from last years garden.  She wanted me to take a small bite.  I politely nodded & put it in my purse.  I didn't eat it.

I took it home.

I plan on using the seeds inside & planting lots of chili pepper plants next year. If you attempt this it will not be a succesful technique if you use store bought vegetables.  *There are exceptions to this, but that is a story for a later date.

I was thinking later about my behavior towards her - the friendly hand who first held the pepper.

She invited me in & gave a piece of her labor for me to enjoy.

As far as she knows I'm some lady who took a pepper, didn't try it, put it in her purse of all places, said thanks and later walked away.

She'll never know the impact that pepper will make.

She doesn't know much about me.  Perhaps you don't either.  I've updated my profile if you want to know a bit about who you are reading about.

So back to impact.  That's ultimately what I'm about.  I love gardening, but more than that I love watching lives change by the power of the Great Healer.   I love seeing death turn into life, blindness into perceiving & understanding, oppressed into free.  These aren't just events recorded in the Bible - they are happening now.

Often we live under the lie that what we do isn't making a difference.  We give away pieces of our labor & never see the impact.  But don't be deceived my friends.  Deep in our root structure resides countless lies that poison & prevent life nutrients from saturating our soul.  Self-criticism, comparison, selfishness & apathy breed these lies deep.

The biggest lie we live: we don't need to rely on the Source, the Giver of life.  Our roots need to be tapped into only HIM, our Father in Heaven. (John 15:4)

1 simple gift.  28 unseen seeds now poured out have the possibility to make 28 pepper plants.  The potential for each plant to bring forth several more peppers.

Impact matters.  Impact multiplies.

Lets sow some shall we!

Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love.

Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, 

for now is the time to seek the LORD,

that He may come and shower righteousness upon you

Hosea 10:12

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