Please, if you will, join me for a moment of silence in honor of my dearly departed dogwood tree.

Each year, around Easter Sunday, this lovely tree would blossom in beautiful pink flowers.  Until this Easter.  I had hoped that maybe it was just sleeping in late this year.  But, it still hasn’t bloomed and I think it’s safe to say it’s not going to.  I don’t know what happened to it, other than the fact it had the misfortune of being planted in my yard; thus, destined for a short life.

I did some research and one of the things I learned is that it would be a bad idea to plant another dogwood in the same spot because a fungus or insects may have killed the original tree and those things could remain in the soil, posing a threat to the new tree.

This reminds me of the parable Jesus told about scattering seeds.  You can read it in full in Matthew 13.  Jesus uses this story about seeds scattered in different types of soil to teach his disciples that not everyone who hears the Good News will be receptive to it.  For a variety of reasons, when we plant seeds in others about the Kingdom of God, those seeds may not take root.

When this happens, when we tell someone about Jesus and they reject what we have to say, it’s important not to take it personally or get discouraged.  God is still at work. Keep loving that person, and trusting that eventually, when their “soil” has been properly prepared by the Holy Spirit, those seeds you planted will take root and grow into something more beautiful than you ever could have imagined.