Just Farmers

1 Corinthians 3:6-7 "I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.  So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow."

      Lord, I love Paul's analogy here!  Having grown up on a farm, I can highly relate to this.  There were so many jobs that had to be done to be able to harvest our fruits and vegetables:

1. Dad would plow.
2. We would all go out and pick rocks.
3. Dad would drag the field.
4. He and mom would  keep the seed potatoes, and cut the runners from the strawberries, plant the seeds in pots that needed a head start, and buy the other seeds we needed.
5. We would help rake and then make the furrow in the soil to make rows for the small seeds.
6. Dad would use the cultivator to make the deep rows for corn seeds and, tomato, potato, squash, cabbage, and broccoli plants.
7. We would spread in the fertilizer and lime.
8. We would all plant the seeds and plants.  As kids, sometimes one would be making the furrow, another right behind her would be planting the seeds, and another came behind covering them up.
9. After the seeds came up there was thinning and weeding to do.
10. Usually You would water for us, Lord, knowing that we had a big garden and just a hand dug well.
11. One year AFTER our neighbors had dug a pond it was so dry we went in the trailer behind the tractor, with pails, buckets, and whatever else we could find that would hold water and hand watered everything.
12. Then when it was time, we all tok part in the harvest.

The point, Lord, was that even though we all had a part, You were the ONE who made things grow so we could harvest.  We were Your servants, but only You can make things grow.
In the church, we all have our jobs to do, the church planters and missionaries pick rocks, You prepare the soil in new fields, they plant and water, You send pastors and grow teachers and workers, but You make the church members grow.  Not one of the workers can claim that it is he who is responsible.  After all we are simply share cropers on Your land.  You bring the harvest.