It’s the time of year when my husband starts getting giddy with garden plans. He starts making plots on grid paper with the ingredients of our future menu plans. It’s equal parts impressive and insane. But I love how excited he gets as he checks the seed trays every day to look for signs of life breaking through the soil.
Like a farmer, when he puts the seeds into the soil, he sacrifices the seeds. He trusts that they will bring about abundance. The soil swallows the seeds up, and before we know it, there are beautiful hints of green, barely noticeable, in each little compartment. Those tiny, fragile plants will grow into great, big plants full of blossoms that will eventually make it to our table to feed our family and guests.
It all starts with one little seed planted on a cold February day. One tiny pepper seed does not just bring us one pepper, but a terrific harvest of peppers that will keep our basket full this summer. Along with the other plants, our baskets will be overflowing, and we will be able to save and share out of that abundance.
Over and over and over again, God reminds us how He takes one small thing and multiplies it to bring about abundance. How could we possibly convince ourselves He won’t do the same for us?
We seem to love to limit God. I personally seem to love to limit God, or at least you’d think so if you could hear us argue. I’m full of excuses – “Lord, I’m afraid…” “Lord, I don’t feel comfortable…” “Lord, I’m not _______ “ or “I’m too _______.” He’s heard them all.
Do you have ways you limit God in your life?
TWO POWERFUL WORDS THAT CRUSH LIMITS
We aren’t the only ones to think small and focus on what little we have to offer. The Bible is full of people who argue with God over limits or how difficult their circumstances appear. From beginning to end, our Bible heroes complain of their inadequacies and make excuses. Noah, Joseph, Jacob, King Jehoshaphat, Jonah, and David (just to name a few) all had excuses or limits.
Two very powerful words are repeated in response to these limitations. These same two words are for YOU today in your circumstances:
“But God…”
You alone might be limited, BUT GOD IN YOU, has no limits.
David cried out in his inadequacy,
“My flesh and my heart may fail, BUT GOD is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” Psalm 73:26
You might feel like you’ve been dealt too bad of a hand. Joseph was certainly dealt a bad hand. BUT GOD “causes EVERYTHING to work together for the good of those who love Him…” (Romans 8:28).
Joseph was kidnapped, thrown into a pit, and sold into slavery by his brothers (talk about family dysfunction). BUT GOD was able to bring great things out of these traumatizing events.
Genesis 50:20 says,
“You intended to harm me, BUT GOD intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.”
God is able to take whatever you have to offer and multiply it for His glory. He is able to go beyond what you could ever hope to accomplish or even envision. He multiplies your abilities, opens up opportunities, unlocks doors, tears down walls, expands territory, and fights for you.
If one small, fragile seed can produce an abundant harvest, your God can and will do the same for you. If you listen to His voice and step out in obedience, He will crush your limits. He will equip you with everything you need. He’s a God who multiplies. Just as the farmer or gardener sacrifices the seed into the ground, give what you have to offer and have faith that God will produce a great harvest.
“Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26
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