Just over a week ago, I planted some grass seed in my yard, hoping to fill in some bare spots that have been there since we moved in. After the first day, which consisted of putting down some fresh top soil and planting the seed, there wasn’t much left to do. My main responsibility was simply to water the ground regularly to make sure it stayed damp until the grass was well established. Other than that, I simply had to wait.
And so, dad after day, I dutifully watered the ground. And while I was at it, I’d make sure to look to see if there was any visible progress. For the first week, the answer was no. Nothing appeared to change; nothing seemed to be happening.
But then it happened.
Although there had been no visible progress for almost a week, when I went out Saturday morning to do the watering, what did I see? Dozens and dozens of little blades of grass sticking out of the ground. And not just the very tips of the blades poking through. There was a significant amount of grass that was now visible — and it seemed like all that growth took place overnight.
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I realize the seeds had sprouted and were growing long before I saw the blades of grass, but that growth was invisible to me, just below the surface. Which is something we all can experience in other areas of life. We may invest in ourselves, or our work, or in the people around us, and still there will be times where we are tempted to wonder if it’s making any difference. But when this happens, there are a few things to consider.
In growing grass, we can plant the seed, and water it, but time is still a necessary component. When we’re investing in something, sometimes there’s only so much we can do, and we have to learn to wait to see the growth that we’re hoping for.
But waiting doesn’t mean doing nothing. In planting the grass, I still needed to put some water on the ground regularly, even when there was a lack of visible growth, For each of us, investing regularly –whether it’s investing in a discipline, or a skill, or a relationship — and doing so over the long haul, is vital, even when there aren’t visible results immediately.
It’s also important to remember that the pace of growth isn’t always consistent. There will be growth spurts, and there will be times where things appear dormant. And so when we’re tempted to give up, wondering if our investment is going to make a difference, it’s good to remember that things could change at any moment, and that moment may be closer than we realize.
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Whether we’re planting seeds, or investing in other areas of life, it pays to be patient. Growth takes time. But it also takes diligence. And even when there’s no visible progress, the growth we’re looking for may be just below the surface, getting ready to break through.