5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.
1 Corinthians 3:5-9
Iron Rose Sister Ministries, through the very image of our logo, and the application of the Common Threads, uses roses or plants to illustrate a point. Jesus Himself relied on many agricultural analogies, making His teaching personal and practical to His hearers. In 1 Corinthians 3, Paul reminds the church members in Corinth that while one plants and another waters, it is always God who brings the growth.
I would like to borrow from another image in order to highlight and celebrate the parts that we, as a ministry, and each of you individually play in the big picture that the I AM has designed. We are participants as His handiwork (Eph. 2:10) as each one does its part (Eph. 4:16). We may never see the ripple effect of our impact (Heb. 11:39-40), but we can trust that God uses our piece in the puzzle to create a vivid tapestry, narrating and weaving a story of redemption and love.
As a ministry, and as Christian women, the I AM has invited us into other women’s lives to equip them to connect to Him and to one another more deeply. The equipping tools and encouragement that women receive through our resources empowers them in their own spiritual walks, but then, is later multiplied as they share those resources with others, who in turn share them with others... multiplying our efforts in ways that we will never fully know. And I love that!
When we lose track of the multiplied effect our piece of the puzzle has made, the I AM, who designed the big picture and brings about the growth, gets all the glory! It is no longer about what we have done, but rather about how He has taken our small part and done His thing, as only He can. And for that, I am grateful.
We are humbly grateful to be one piece of the puzzle. And when we cannot see the big picture, we trust the I AM to use and multiply our efforts for the larger impact in the kingdom.
In 2020, we will continue to explore what it means to obediently serve as one piece of the puzzle and to be part of the whole.
In the meantime, we invite you to be one piece of the puzzle through our end-of-year fundraising efforts, specifically through Giving 2x2 Tuesday, December 3, in which matching donations will multiply our financial efforts. Details on our Facebook page.