toddcast

Last spring, I undertook a simple lawn project that would teach me an unexpected lesson about spiritual growth. I planted grass seeds in two different areas of my yard. For the first patch, I prepared the ground by adding nutrient-rich topsoil to the naturally lower terrain. For the second, I simply loosened the existing earth and scattered the seeds. Over the following weeks, I maintained both areas with equal care—watering regularly and watching expectantly for signs of new life. The results, however, were strikingly different. The first section, enriched with additional soil, soon displayed vibrant green shoots pushing through the earth. Week after week, this area flourished with thick, healthy grass. The second patch lagged significantly behind, eventually producing sparse, weaker blades that never quite matched the vitality of their counterparts. The difference, I realized, lay not in my efforts but in the foundation I had provided. The topsoil's promised nutrients—which I had...

Don’t you love all those Old Testament stories? Oversized arks being built. Seas being parted. Walls tumbling down. Lions mouths being shut. Prophets evacuating earth on chariots of fire.   And certainly there’s no shortage of jaw-dropping stories in the New Testament: the blind see, the lame walk, the dead live. All these miracles do impress me and remind me of God’s awesome power, but they also can make me feel pretty insignificant. I’ve never built an ark, brought down a wall, shut a lion’s mouth, and I don’t expect to leave earth on a flaming chariot. I’ve never healed the sick or raised the dead.   So, in this biblical world of superheroes and miracle-workers, where do I fit in? Is there a need for an ordinary Joe like me? What about the rest of us? That’s when I turn to this Old Testament story. The full story is in 2 Kings 5, but here’s a quick synopsis. A powerful general named Naaman has been afflicted with leprosy. A Jewish servant refers him to Elisha,...