Planting Seeds Above the Clouds
1 Corinthians 3:6-7 — I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was God who made it grow. It’s not important who does the planting, or who does the watering. What’s important is that God makes the seed grow.
The man sitting beside me on that flight looked like someone who had never met a stranger.
I was flying home to Florida from New York City, young and full of plans. He was a big, joyful man with a Bible open on his tray table.
He smiled, said hello, and before long, we were talking like old friends.
He was a pastor.
I told him about my big dream of becoming a movie star. I rambled on about everything I wanted to do with my life, and he listened like he had all the time in the world.
Then, almost casually, he asked me a question.
“Do you know who God is?”
It wasn’t forceful. It wasn’t judgmental. Just a simple question.
And then another.
“What if what you want isn’t actually the best thing? What if God has more in store?”
I laughed.
Not because I thought he was ridiculous. But because I knew exactly what I wanted.
And, if I’m being completely truthful, at that point in my life, I didn’t really care much about God.
But that pastor didn’t flinch.
He didn’t argue with me. He didn’t try to win a debate. He just smiled that same warm smile.
And before we parted ways, he said five words I’ve never forgotten.
“I’ll be praying for you.”
That flight was twenty years ago.
I never got his name. I have no idea where he lives or whether he’s still pastoring a church.
But I’ve thought about him more times than I can count.
I wish I could find him.
I’d love to tell him what God has done in my life since that flight. How much has changed. How differently my story unfolded from the one I had so carefully planned.
I’d love to tell him that those questions stayed with me.
And I’d really love to tell him that his prayers were not wasted.
You see, that pastor was the first person who gently interrupted my plans with the possibility that God might have something different for my life.
He didn’t demand an answer.
He simply planted a seed.
And then he got off the airplane.
He had no idea what would happen next.
I think about that when I read what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians.
One person plants. Another waters.
But God makes it grow.
Friend, maybe there’s someone you’ve been praying for who doesn’t seem interested in God.
Maybe you’ve shared your faith, offered encouragement, invited them to church, or simply tried to love them well.
And nothing seems to be happening.
Maybe you’re wondering whether any of it matters.
Can I encourage you?
Don’t confuse what you can’t see with what God can’t do.
You aren’t responsible for making the seed grow.
That’s God’s part.
Your part is to be faithful with the opportunities He puts in front of you.
To love someone. To ask a question. To share the hope you have in Jesus. To pray, even when you don’t know whether your prayers are making a difference.
And to trust God with what happens next.
Because sometimes you plant a seed in someone’s life and get to watch it grow.
And sometimes you plant it, say goodbye, and never see that person again.
Like a pastor on an airplane twenty years ago.
I wonder if he remembers that flight.
I wonder if he has any idea how much those few minutes mattered to me.
Someday, I hope I get to tell him.
But until then, I’ll tell you.
Keep planting. Keep watering. Keep praying.
You may never see the harvest.
But that doesn’t mean God isn’t working.
After all, that pastor had no idea what God was going to do with the young woman sitting beside him.
He was simply faithful with the moment God gave him.
And twenty years later, I’m still talking about it.
Because God is still the One who makes the seed grow.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
- Has someone ever planted a seed in your life through a conversation, an act of kindness, or a simple question? Do they know the difference they made?
- Is there someone you’ve been praying for who doesn’t seem interested in God? Have you become discouraged because you haven’t seen a change?
- Do you ever feel responsible for changing someone’s heart instead of trusting God to do what only He can do?
- How might your conversations change if you focused more on loving and listening than getting an immediate response?
- Who has God placed in your path right now who might need a little encouragement, a thoughtful question, or someone willing to pray for them?
QUESTION TO CARRY WITH YOU TODAY
What if the small seed God is asking me to plant today becomes part of a story I may never get to see?
