Spiritual Cultivation

How do Christians grow? Simply put, we cannot grow by ourselves! There is much that we must do if we are to grow to maturity and bear fruit, but left to ourselves we cannot bring about the growth God desires. That is why we must as Jesus says "remain in the vine" Branches that are disconnected from the vine will never bear fruit. A helpful illustration is one of farming. Farmers go out to sow seed, there is much that a farmer must do to cultivate the soil, and aid the seed's growth but the farmer cannot make it rain. The farmer cannot cause the seed to sprout. And yet whether it is a good season or bad season the farmer maintains faith that the sun will shine and the rain will fall, otherwise farming would be impossible.