When we moved to Alexandria last June, a friend gave us a ginkgo tree seedling to come with us, as our household was “transplanted” into new soil in the time-honored practice of itinerant ministry.  Only six inches above the dirt, it was a pencil-sized shoot with 3 little leaves hanging off the end, each stem a tender tiny branch.  I was determined that it survive through the first year, so it could move toward thriving in its new surroundings.  But as time unfolded and seasons changed, I realized how much I (and the seedling) would depend on something beyond what I could do for it.  I did find a place to insert this precious baby in the ground.  I did put a “tomato plant” cage around it to keep the lawnmower from accidentally bulldozing the easily-missed camouflage.  And as fall came, the leaves goldened and browned, and then turned loose completely.  There was nothing but the apparently lifeless stick left for the winter.  And how long the winter seemed for me as I thought about and yes, prayed over my gingko twig!  During dry stretches, I kept watering that spot in the lawn, not knowing for sure if it was really drinking  up anything.  Part of me prepared myself for the possibility that I would never see green from that stick again, and that I could be grateful for the partial cycle of seasons that we experienced together.  But part of me knew that to keep doing what I could do in the whole process could very well bear fruit (or at least leaves), and before summer, I would know. 

In early March, I thought I detected something like a bud on the end – or was that just the way the stick was shaped at that point?  The next time I looked, it was the first day of spring, and lo and behold, there were tiny green corners pushing their way out where the bud tip had been!  That’s when I knew for sure and gave God thanks that Spring was here!  Finally, something I could see and touch from what God had been nurturing and growing (while all I could do was pray and do my little part in the process) all along. 

As you and I look over the soil we plow, the seeds we plant, the “sticks” we wonder and worry about, where are the places we find such experiences - where it takes seasons of patience, persistence, and partnership with One who knows far more of the mystery in the making than we can understand?  As we focus on the mission to which we have been called, “to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world,” what are the seedlings we eagerly yearn to grow?  Where are we discovering fruits, shoots, and new recruits, like tender leaves making their way toward the Son?

I thank God for your faithfulness in prayer, care, and watering.  (Remember Paul’s affirmation that “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth,” from I Corinthians 3:6)  I pray for strength and growth in your witness and mine.  And you know what?  I had not noticed before, but now I see how closely the gingko leaf resembles a butterfly!

Happy Easter and Blessed Eastertide!

Yours in Christ,

Ellen R. Alston

Alexandria District Superintendent

The United Methodist Church

2350-A Methodist Parkway

Woodworth, Louisiana 71485-7910

Phone: 318.443.3213

Fax: 318.448.3550