By Guest Contributor: Robin Grimes
Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. Genesis 1:29
Introduction
In Part 1, Robin invited us into the honesty of the garden — a place where the soil tells the truth and where God uses the land to shape the soul.
Today, she returns with a story that is not only practical and unforgettable, but profoundly biblical. Her green-bean vines became a classroom of the Holy Spirit, teaching her about timing, trust, and the futility of striving in her own strength.
I pray you feel the Lord’s gentle conviction and comfort through her words.
🌱 In God’s Good Time
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens. Ecclesiastes 3:1
By Robin Grimes
There’s a story from my garden last year that I still carry with me — a story about green beans, impatience, and the perfection of God’s timing.
I had planted my beans with high hopes and careful attention. The vines grew beautifully — thick, lush, leafy, and full of promise. But that promise seemed hollow. Week after week they produced nothing.
According to the seed packet, they should have been full of beans by then.
In fact, everything should have been working.
But nothing was.
And like any impatient gardener (or impatient child of God), I went into problem‑solving mode.
I amended the soil.
I researched endlessly.
I stared at those vines as if I could will them into fruiting.
I exhausted myself trying to make something happen that simply was not ready to happen.
I finally concluded the seeds must have been bad.
So I made up my mind:
When I return from this eight‑day trip, I will rip them up and start over.
But when I returned — sunburned, tired, dusty, and already reaching for my garden gloves — I stopped in my tracks.
The vines were loaded with beans.
Not a few.
Not barely starting.
Covered.
In eight days of my absence —
out of my controlling influence,
beyond my analyzing,
outside of my striving —
the Lord had done what I could not.
They fruited when I let go.
They produced when I stopped hovering.
They yielded in God’s good time, not mine.
It humbled me.
It exposed me.
It revealed a self‑reliance I did not know I carried.
I had trusted more in:
- my knowledge
- my opinion
- my effort
- my timing
than in the God who brings forth fruit from the earth.
There is a rhythm to God’s work that my anxious heart wants to rush.
But I cannot rush what only God can grow.
Sometimes the greatest spiritual growth happens
when I stop digging my hands into everything
and trust Him to do the hidden work beneath the soil.
My green beans taught me this:
God is never late.
God is never idle.
God is never dependent on my striving.
He is quietly, faithfully bringing forth fruit
—in beans,
in orchards,
and in me—
exactly when He wills.
I am learning to rest in that.
— Robin
Closing Reflection — Pastor Dee
Robin’s experience echoes the parables of Jesus — seeds hidden, work unseen, growth happening under the surface while we sleep and rise, night and day (Mark 4:26–29).
Her green-bean vines preach this truth:
God’s timing is not slow. It’s perfect.
And His timing is often revealed most clearly in the things we cannot control.
As you read this today, maybe there is something in your own life:
- a prayer unanswered,
- a hope deferred,
- a child you’re waiting on,
- a dream that seems stagnant,
- a season that feels fruitless.
Take heart.
The God who brought beans in Robin’s absence is the same God who is working beneath the surface in you.
May this story help you loosen your grip, release your worry, and trust the One who brings fruit in His time — and never a moment too late.
Closing Prayer
Gracious Father,
We thank You for being the God who works beneath the surface when we cannot see, measure, or control what You are doing. Thank You for the seeds You plant, the soil You tend, and the fruit You bring forth in Your perfect time.
Forgive us for the moments when impatience replaces trust, when striving overshadows surrender, and when we believe our effort matters more than Your faithfulness. Teach us to loosen our grip on outcomes and rest our hope in You.
For every heart reading today who feels weary from waiting—
for the prayer that seems unanswered,
the season that feels barren,
the promise that appears delayed—
remind us that You are never late, never idle, and never dependent on our own strength.
Do Your quiet work in us, Lord.
Grow what only You can grow.
Bring forth fruit that lasts, not by our labor, but by Your grace.
Help us trust the hidden work of Your hands and rest in the truth that what You begin, You will surely complete—in our lives, in our families, and in Your time.
We receive Your peace today, and we wait with hope.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen.
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