What is the turtle factor? How does the turtle factor effect our lives? How long does something take to make an effect?
Do you remember the story of the tortoise and the hare? If not, the story is about a race and the hare starts out strong and fast and the tortoise moves along slow and steady eventually the hare wears out and cannot finish the race. He never set a pace, he did not appreciate the tortoises easy slow and steady pace either. But in the end of the story the tortoise finished the race and won.
Life is like the tortoise and hare. You can start out fast and furious but life throws curves, obstacles, and mountains to climb. It takes endurance and stamina to make it to the end. To me this is the turtle factor.
Growth is not instantaneous it is gradual. We live in a modern age with quick results, fast food, and the internet where things move rapidly. But life is more like the turtle factor. The turtle factor is a gradual growth process that builds character, endurance, and wisdom.
It is the same in the Kingdom of heaven the parable of the mustard seeds has multiple life lessons for us to learn. In Matthew 13:31-32 Jesus says, “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field. Which indeed is the least of all the seeds; but when it is grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
The man is anyone of us. He took a seed and sowed it, meaning he planted it. Anyone who gardens or farms understands that there is a season the seed dies before it germinates, and the growth process starts. The first day of planting does not bear fruit, it is costly and laborious. You must plow the soil, make sure the soil is fertilized and you physically must get the seed in the ground accomplished. Then you make sure it has the proper amount of daylight and water to give it time to sprout. This is all before you even see growth.
And then the season of waiting begins! The turtle just keeps moving never giving up even though the hare taunted, laughed, and harassed him. The turtle just slowing kept moving forward.
Once the seed is planted the mustard seed is the least of all seeds. Sometimes in life we may feel like we are the least of everyone and it is taking too long, and we are not going to get to the end or grow. But the truth is that you are growing but just like a seed you do not see it till you come through the soil of life.
The parable of ‘the kingdom of heaven goes on to say that the mustard seed when grown it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.’ When our growth period of a ‘seed of the kingdom’ is complete, we are also grown and helpful to others. We can then give of our experiences of growth and help someone else along in their growth period. We can give our support, wisdom and grace learned through our own growth process in life. That is all part of the turtle factor.
Choose the turtle factor and just keep moving forward and do not allow the ‘hares’ of distractions, harassments or obstacles get you discouraged, depressed or disillusioned. You will succeed if you just keep going.