Mar 17, 2017

A daily devotional through the recorded words Jesus spoke while He walked alongside us. Our website http://alittlewalkwithgod.com.

1. Thanks for joining me today for "A Little Walk with God." I'm your host Richard Agee.
2. I admire farmers for what they do. It seems their work never ends, but I’m also fascinated by the miracle of life and the analogies Jesus uses with growing things as He speaks.
3. Scripture
   1. John 12:23-28
   2. Jesus (to Philip and Andrew): The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth: unless a grain of wheat is planted in the ground and dies, it remains a solitary seed. But when it is planted, it produces in death a great harvest. The one who loves this life will lose it, and the one who despises it in this world will have life forevermore. Anyone who serves Me must follow My path; anyone who serves Me will want to be where I am, and he will be honored by the Father. My spirit is low and unsettled. How can I ask the Father to save Me from this hour? This hour is the purpose for which I have come into the world. But what I can say is this: “Father, glorify Your name!”
4. Devotional
   1. Jesus’ words got me thinking about wheat production?
      1. Learned some facts about growing wheat in OK in make a profit
      2. One grain of wheat buried in the ground produces one stalk of wheat
      3. The stalk has a head with from 8-15 spikelets
      4. Each spikelet holds 2-2.5 grains of wheat
      5. Each head has 20-30 grains of wheat
      6. Farmers sow 18 - 22 seeds per square foot to produce a profitable crop
      7. Need 60 heads per foot for profit
      8. Harvest two or three times a year
   2. Tells us a few things about wheat you might not know and how it might relate to Jesus’ words
      1. The seed must die and be buried before it is can grow again
      2. The plant that grows out of the ground looks nothing like the seed from which it came
      3. But it produces a lot of seeds that look just like it did before it was buried
      4. Produced a lot more of them also, 40, 60, 100 fold
      5. Cut several times in the seasons but revives to the suffering makes it come back and produce more
      6. Heads are usually bigger the second cutting than the first
   3. Jesus talked about the necessity of His burial
      1. He came to die and His death would return Him to His place of glory
      2. His death would bring glory to the Father and fulfill His own destiny
      3. It would also do something for us that we cannot imagine
      4. He makes us part of His kingdom
      5. We become like Him when we follow Him
      6. When we allow Him into our lives and gain new life in Him we become part of that stalk that produces grains of wheat
      7. When we feel buried in all the suffering, maybe it is just the harvesting of the wheat we have produced so we can produce more
   4. Wheat is a fascinating plant when you walk through the fields and grab a few heads of the ripened grain in your hand
      1. Next time you pass a field of wheat or corn or anything growing out there, think of the miracle happening and what God might be wanting to do through you as you become part of the harvest of souls and the means of bringing others into the kingdom as well
5. If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don't, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for "A Little Walk with God."