DURING THIS MONSOON SEASON, I FELT MOVED TO WORK OUTDOORS IN THE GARDEN AND REALLY GET INTO THE TASK, REPOTTING, WEEDING AND GETTING FRESH SOIL INTO THE GARDEN. I FELT, AS WE WENT THROUGH THESE TASKS THAT WE WERE ALSO GOING THROUGH THE PROCESS SPIRITUALLY. THROUGH THIS PROCESS AS I WORKED WITH OUR HOME TEAM OF SARASWATI, INDRAMMA AND SWAPNA, WITH DHANA COMING TO WATCH US WORK AND CHATTING WITH US, I COULD ENGAGE EVERYONE IN DISCUSSIONS BASED ON DIFFERENT RELEVANT BIBLE SCRIPTURES THAT GOD LED ME TO. IN AM THE VINE AND YOU ARE THE BRANCHES (John 15) BECAME A STORY I COULD ILLUSTRATE AS WE BUILT A TRELLIS FOR THE PASSION FRUIT VINE THAT WE ARE GROWING. WE DISCUSSED WEEDING IN THE CONTEXT OF LOOKING INTO OUR LIVES DAILY TO SEE WHAT NEEDED TO BE WEEDED OUT BEFORE OUR LIVES BECAME OVERRUN WITH SOMETHING THAT WASN’T MEANT TO BE THERE.

WHILE WE WERE DISCUSSING THESE THINGS, ONE DAY, SWAPNA MADE A VERY INSIGHTFUL OBSERVATION. WE WERE PRUNING ROSES AND CUTTING BACK SOME PLANTS AND TRYING TO SEE IF WE COULD PLANT THE DISCARDED PLANTS SOMEWHERE ELSE. AT THIS POINT WE FOUND A PATCH OF EARTH JUST OUTSIDE OUR GATE AND I ASKED, “DO YOU THINK THESE PLANTS WILL TAKE?” SWAPNA IMMEDIATELY SAID, “OF COURSE, IT’S THE MONSOON. EVEN IF YOU DON’T ACTUALLY PLANT THESE, AND MERELY TOSS THEM ONTO THE EARTH, THEY WILL GROW, BECAUSE OF THE RAIN.

I THOUGHT THIS WAS REALLY PROFOUND AND GOD IMMEDIATELY DREW MY ATTENTION TO THE FARMER WHO SCATTERED THE SEED. WE HAVE READ THIS SCRIPTURE BEFORE IN THE CONTEXT OF MAKING DISCIPLES, BUT I FELT LIKE GOD WAS SAYING THAT THIS SEASON IN PARTICULAR WAS A TIME TO SCATTER THE SEEDS. HE SHOWED ME THAT IN THIS CASE THE RAIN WAS THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THAT THE HOLY SPIRIT WAS MOVING AND IF WE WOULD JUST SCATTER THE SEEDS, GOD WOULD WORK ON THEM (Matthew 13).

THE ONE THING THAT HAS HELD ME BACK IN THE PAST HAS BEEN LACK OF CONFIDENCE IN MY ABILITY. THROUGH THE PAST YEAR GOD HAS BEEN SHOWING ME THAT I JUST NEED TO LEAVE THE RESULT TO HIM AND I NEED TO PERFORM THE TASK OF SCATTERING THE SEED.

I BEGAN TO MEDITATE ON THE SEED. I ENCOURAGED OUR CHURCH AND MY HOME TEAM TO DO THE SAME. WE REMINDED OURSELVES THAT WE DON’T REALLY KNOW WHAT HAPPENS TO SEEDS UNDER THE EARTH, BUT WE TRUST THEY WILL GROW INTO PLANTS. SOME DO AND SOME DON’T. WE LEAVE THESE RESULTS TO GOD. MY ATTENTION WAS DRAWN TO THIS FACT OVER AND OVER UNTIL I KNEW THAT GOD WAS SAYING SOMETHING TO US. SO I TALKED WITH OUR HOME TEAM ABOUT SCATTERING SEEDS.

THROUGH THE PAST MONTHS, AS WE HAVE BEEN DISTRIBUTING FOOD TO THE HUNGRY, YOU WOULD HAVE HEARD THAT WE TELL THE PEOPLE WHO COME TO RECEIVE FOOD BAGS THAT IT IS BECAUSE GOD LOVES THEM SO MUCH THAT HE PROVIDES FOR THEM. THIS IS ONLY BECAUSE I FELT GOD LEADING ME TO SPEAK THESE WORDS TO THEM. I HAD SET OUT ONLY TO DISTRIBUTE THE FOOD. BUT GOD TOLD ME TO TELL THESE PEOPLE THAT HE LOVED THEM. WE CONTINUE TO DO THIS AS WE DISTRIBUTE FOOD. WE ALSO SHARE ABOUT THE DIFFERENT MIRACLES OF MULTIPLICATION THAT WE HAVE PERSONALLY WITNESSED OVER THE PAST MONTHS.

NOW WHEN PEOPLE COME BACK FOR FOOD, AND I BEGIN TO SPEAK ABOUT JESUS, THEY SMILE AT ME AND THEY TELL ME SOMETHING THAT EITHER SWAPNA, INDRAMMA OR SARASWATI HAS ALREADY SHARED WITH THEM. OR EVEN SOMETHING I MAY HAVE SHARED WITH THEM.

WHEN SWAPNA GOES HOME EACH EVENING, AS SHE PASSES HER NEIGHBOURS’ HOUSES, VERY OFTEN THEY STOP AND ASK HER WHAT SHE LEARNED FROM THE BIBLE.  SWAPNA IS SCATTERING SEEDS. SO IS INDRAMMA AS SHE AND OTHER WOMEN GATHER OUTSIDE THEIR HOUSES EACH EVENING TO CHAT AFTER WORK.

BUT ANOTHER AMAZING THING THAT I WITNESSED WAS WHEN GOD SPOKE TO ME AND HELPED ME UNDERSTAND THAT HE GOES BEFORE US. THAT IF WE TRULY ABIDE IN HIM AND HE IN US THEN WHEREVER WE GO HE GOES WITH US AND BEFORE US. SO I BEGAN TO PRAY THIS PRAYER, EVEN AS I PRAYED OVER THE SCATTERING OF SEEDS… I PRAYED, GOD PLEASE LET PEOPLE FEEL YOUR PRESENCE. LET THEM EXPERIENCE YOUR HOLY SPIRIT. SO EACH TIME WE WERE DISTRIBUTING FOOD PARTICULARLY, I WOULD PRAY THIS. I REMEMBER ON ONE OCCASION, I PLACED A BAG OF FOOD INTO A WOMAN’S HAND AND WAS PRAYING, LORD LET HER FEEL YOUR LOVE FOR HER. SHE BURST INTO TEARS INSTANTLY AND WEPT AND CLUNG TO ME. I KNEW THAT SHE WAS FEELING GOD’S LOVE WASH OVER HER.

ON OTHER OCCASIONS I HAVE, WHILE HANDING OVER A BAG OF RICE AND DHAL, SAID, “I AM PRAYING FOR YOU.” OR “I WILL BE PRAYING FOR YOU.” AND THE RESPONSE HAS BEEN, “PLEASE PRAY FOR ME NOW!” SO I WOULD CALL OUR TEAM AND WE WOULD PRAY FOR THE PERSON.

I NOW PRAY THIS SCRIPTURE OVER THE PEOPLE WE HAVE BEEN MEETING:

Isaiah 52:6

^“ Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.”

SO, SCATTERING SEEDS, I HAVE LEARNED, IS TAKING EVERY OPPORTUNITY TO SHOW THE LOVE OF JESUS TO PEOPLE BY KEENLY LISTENING TO WHAT GOD IS SAYING AND WHERE HE IS LEADING US…OR WHO HE IS LEADING US TO.  

By Ruth Khanna in Hyderabad

***