Death Brings Life

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit."
John 12:24

Death is a scary word. When I think of death I think of pain. I know there can be painless death, but I guess when I think of death I don't think painless. Pain is not something most people enjoy. We have whole stores dedicated to stopping pain and a health industry that tries to relieve pain and stop death. Even with medical breakthroughs death comes to each of us.

I think about the seed mentioned in this verse. Seeds are buried into dirt and they die! But when they die something amazing happens. Life! The seed breaks and growth comes out of it. That growth continues and breaks the surface of the soil and reaches toward the light. Water and light causes the new life to grow up. Weeding and fertilizing helps it grow up to become the plant that the seed was intended to be. Then that plant can bear fruit.

Now, this verse really isn't taking about seeds that go into the ground, but rather about seeds in us. There are ugly seeds, let's face it most seeds aren't particularly pretty, that are placed in us and in order for them to bear fruit they must die. The death of the seed usually is painful. I'm not sure how long it takes an actual seed to die, but the death process of our seeds can feel so long. Then it starts to grow. It is striving to get out of the soil of us and reaching for the Light. This striving involves growing up right there the soil, pushing aside dirt as it heads up. This part of the process is painful as well. Moving and shifting, and even breaking through dirt clumps in us. Then it breaks the surface. Ouch, that hurts! That breaking through process seems like it must be the last painful part, but then comes the pruning and plucking of the fruit.

Although the whole process is painful it brings further life. That life helps us, but it also can be used to feed and nourish others. If the fruit isn't picked then it will just rot on the plant. I certainly don't want to have gone through the whole death and growth process to just have my fruit die. I may not enjoy the pain of the fruit being plucked, but it is much better than just having what Christ has grown in me go to waste.

What's the point of this whole post? Well, I guess it really is a reminder to me that the whole process is worth every ounce of pain, even when that pain feels unbearable. Sometimes I want the dying to end. Sometimes I want to shifting inside me to end. Sometimes I want the breaking out to end. Sometimes I want to keep my fruit all to myself. Even though I feel this way sometimes I truly do want to continue to grow and that means dying, growing, and reaping.

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