The roots of a mighty tree grow deep and wide long before a single flower blooms. What feels hidden or insignificant right now might be the very foundation for something beautiful later.
Arrive
There are seasons where you step back and wonder if anything is actually changing. Not because you’ve given up. Not because you’re going backwards.
But because you just… don’t feel different.
The same thoughts still show up. The same struggles are still there. And it can feel like you’re putting in effort without seeing anything to show for it.
I’ve been feeling this in my own marriage lately. There are areas where I’ve seen glimpses of change - healthier patterns, better responses, more awareness than I used to have.
But then there are some areas where I want to grow but I struggle to just get the seed planted. A seed of faithfulness and consistency to do things I say I’m going to do and follow through. Sometimes this can feel discouraging.
Because when change feels slow, it’s easy to question whether it’s happening at all. Sometimes I want to focus more on the growth I’ve seen than the areas where I need to do some tilling of the weeds and planting of new seeds of change. Because that’s harder work.
Receive
We tend to measure growth by what we can feel. It if feels different, we assume something is happening. If it doesn’t, we assume nothing is.
But growth doesn’t always work like that. A lot of real heart change happens quietly. It shows up in ways that are easy to overlook:
The fact that you notice things sooner.
The fact that you don’t stay in the same place as long.
The fact that you’re even aware of the tension at all.
Those things matter. Even if they don’t feel dramatic. Even if they don’t feel like “enough.” Because growth isn’t always about becoming someone completely new overnight.
Sometimes it’s about slowly becoming less like who you used to be. And that kind of change doesn’t always come with a feeling. It comes with time. With repetition. With small, steady shifts that add up.
Respond
If it feels like nothing is changing right now, don’t rush to that conclusion. Look a little closer.
What’s different that you might be overlooking?
Where are you responding differently, even if it’s subtle?
Ask a trusted friend who you know will speak truth to you, “In what ways do you see change in my life, and in what ways am I still holding back?”
You might not feel it yet. But that doesn’t mean it’s not happening, because we can’t base everything on feelings.
Not all growth is felt. Some of it is only seen over time. You don’t have to feel different for something to be different.
On Repeat
“Seed of Faith” - Charity Gayle
There are a few lines from this song that have been sitting with me this week.
”You’re working and I’m growing, in the trial and through the storm. In the waiting, teach me patience. Remind my heart that I’m not alone.”
“You say; So in the field of doubt plant a seed of faith, and I’ll send the rain.”
“So let it rain, let it rain (‘cause things start to change). Bring the rain, bring the rain (and it won’t stay the same).”
Seeds can spend a long time hidden. Maybe that’s why growth can feel so discouraging sometimes.
So much of it happens underneath the surface - slow enough that it’s easy to mistake silence for stagnation.
But maybe change starts long before we can see it. Maybe the rain is still doing something even when the ground looks the same.
Buried doesn’t mean forgotten. And unseen doesn’t mean unchanged.
Enjoy this week’s On Repeat!
In Christ,
Ben
