All by Itself

“This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. ²⁷Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how.²⁸All by itself the soil produces grain” (Mk 4:26-28 NIV)

I love the ‘all by itself’ principle. Jesus tells us that our job is to simply scatter Kingdom seed––through healing, proclamation and demonstrations of His mercy––and then leave the rest up to Him. There are two things for us to learn in this short parable: first, Kingdom activity, once it is released, is powerful and fruitful. Second, we don’t see much of what God is up to.

A few weeks ago, I wrote about preaching at the Central Mosque in Nakuru. Unbeknown to me, this set a three-year series of events into motion that resulted in a group of Christians’ lives being spared (see the blog, “The Rest of the Story”). I had no way of knowing at the time, but my scattering some Kingdom seed released God’s “all by itself”. Recently I heard about another situation in which the Lord continued to work, long after I thought He was finished.

In October 2013, I shared a story about a Muslim slum called Bundeni, situated in Nakuru, Kenya. Bundeni is the poorest and most dangerous neighborhood in the city, so dangerous that even the police would not go there. We went into Bundeni to conduct the first medical clinic ever on record. Our partner, Mike, had advised us to leave all jewelry at our hotel, and to not take our backpacks off for any reason (in fact, he told us to wear them on our fronts so that no one could reach in without us knowing. Here is an excerpt from that original story––

These were the sickest people that we have encountered yet in Africa. The area was crowded, with the clinic spread out on either side of an open sewer. Yet, the people waited patiently and there was greater and greater peace as time went by. We were visited by local dignitaries, who came to make sure that we were alright… [T]he president of Kenya television arrived all the way from Nairobi (about 3 hours away). Mike and I were interviewed by a newspaper, and two different television networks.

The reason there was such a media presence was because people were sincerely shocked (and worried) that a group of Christians from the West would go into such a dangerous area. But the day went surprisingly smoothly:

The team worked really well together; over 200 people received medical care. The prayer team was busy all day. Many Muslims were happy to receive prayer in the name of Jesus; many healings took place. By the end of the day, 48 people from the neighborhood had prayed to receive Christ. This was a very big decision for each of them, as they knew that in doing so, they would face rejection, criticism and perhaps even violence… At the end of the day, many came to Mike and his team, expressing gratitude that a team had come and expressed care and love in such a practical and needed manner.

After leavening Kenya, I knew that Mike and his team had followed up on the 48 people who had made a decision to turn to Jesus. But it was only a few weeks ago that I heard the rest of the story.

God used the medical clinic that day to open a crack in what was the incredible darkness of crime, dire poverty, addiction, violence and hopelessness. From a single day’s Kingdom activity, the atmosphere in Bundeni began to change. Where there had only been hostility, now there was a growing openness to Mike and his team. They kept going back, talking with families, playing with the children, and simply being representatives of Jesus. After a while, they started gathering on Sunday mornings with a few children. And then more. And more. They found a facility and began a program where the children learned about Jesus, not just through songs and teaching, but through consistent and practical expressions of His love and care––a meal was provided for each child, instruction in life skills. The Sunday morning school became the central event for these children each week. After a while, school uniforms were provided for every child.

Now, every week, 2,400 children gather, with more being added all the time. Mike’s team constantly is visiting the families, talking and praying with them, and helping out in various practical ways. The light in the children’s lives is greatly impacting their parents and grandparents. In the last six months, Mike and his team have many times been summoned to the home of a dying relative who have said that they don’t want to die without Jesus. He continues to perform many Christian funerals for those in this Muslim community. Bundeni is being powerfully transformed by the irresistible Kingdom. “Behold, I make everything new!”

This is why we can never stop scattering seed, whether or not we are present to see the results. This is the Gospel, the power of God to rescue lives, to change destinies and entire communities. (Rom. 1:16) Once again, I am amazed at what Jesus does in us and through us as we follow Him, scattering seed as we go, continually learning as we scatter, that the Kingdom grows…All by itself.