My husband and I learned how to garden at a late age. There’s not much opportunity to garden when you live on the 17th floor of an apartment building in Toronto, but we did learn to garden when we moved to Africa. Friends taught us what to plant, how to plant, how to carefully take care of our young seeds, and even how to break up cow manure to spread it evenly.
Jesus told a story about a farmer who was gardening and sowing his seeds (Matthew 13:1-23). The story can teach us a lot about how to stay planted when we first become Christians.
Some of the seed the farmer was going to plant fell along the path and was eaten by the birds
When you first become a Christian, be sure to communicate with God a lot because He wants to listen to your heart as well as speak to you and show you truths about Himself and His plans. Pray. Pray a lot. You will likely learn a lot from God and other believers about following Christ and the Bible in a short period of time. Make sure not to just “drop” these truths along the way, because they could then be forgotten or snatched up. Record what God is showing you. Keep a journal or a blog so you can go back and remember the lessons. Talk with others about what God is revealing to you and about what is happening in your heart and your mind. Whether you use Twitter or Facebook status updates, text messages or good old-fashioned face-to-face conversations, share the Good News! Also share struggles and questions with other trusted Christians.
Some seeds the farmer sowed fell into rocky places, so they did spring up, but they had no root. When the sun came, the plants were scorched and died
As new Christians, we need to be rooted in sound biblical truth and teaching as well as Christian fellowship. Join a Bible study, listen to sermons at church and on podcasts, read the Bible on your own and consider getting a study Bible. Participate in a community of believers who will encourage you, challenge you, hold you accountable, and journey with you towards God. Fellowship with other believers—in youth group, in college & career groups at church or on campus, at Sunday worship, and in your home over dinner.
When the farmer was planting, some seeds fell among the thorns, which ended up choking the plants
Jesus explains that the thorns represent the “worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth,” (Matthew 13:22), which choke the seed and make it unfruitful. Often, people who don’t believe in God are attracted to Christians because they are “different.” Not allowing the worries of life and the deceitfulness of wealth to take over our lives is a great way to be different and to bear fruit for Jesus. As young people, we tend to worry because we’ve been blessed with a lot of choices. What should I eat for dinner? Where should I go to school? What should I study? Where should I live? What should I do with my spare time? What job should I accept? Who should I marry? How many kids should I have? All of these questions are important issues requiring answers (especially what to eat for dinner!) but we can either worry about them or trust God with them. Likewise, we can either worry about money and stuff, or we can be free. As a new Christian, think about giving more than getting. Give—your money, your things, your time, your skills, your heart. Be free from the materialism and greed that seems normal and yet often chokes God’s desire to produce fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control in us (Galatians 4:22-23).
The seed that fell on the good soil produced a great crop
Jesus explained the seed that fell on good soil is like a person who hears the Word, understands it and produces a crop yielding 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown. As a new Christian, you have the opportunity to let God multiply your life. Your life can be more than just your own! If you read, listen to, and understand God’s Word, His idea of kingdom, His plans and ideas for your life and for the world, you can have a life that will touch and influence many others—for this world and the next. So, if you’re a new Christian, get planted and make sure it’s in the good soil.
