“Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” — 2 Corinthians 9:6

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Hunter Woodhall and Tara Davis-Woodhall are recognized as the elite power couple in the sport of track and field. Hunter has been to multiple Paralympic Games and walked away from the most recent one with a gold medal in the 400 meters. His wife, Tara, also grabbed a gold medal in the 2024 Olympic Games in the women’s long jump.

The hearts of people all across the world have melted as they’ve seen each one cheering on the other at various competitions around the world, rarely leaving one another’s side. They regularly upload vlogs of their travels and competitions on their YouTube channel.

In a recent exchange prior to a major meet Tara was in, Hunter said something profound to her regarding the nerves she said she felt the morning of competition. He told her, “You can’t be scared of the rain if you have a seed in the ground.”

Woodhall’s point was that if you’ve done the work and made the investment, the results will be what they will be. The only reason to be worried is if you have failed to show up prepared. If you know you’ve done everything to give the best of which you’re capable, that’s all that matters. You have nothing to be nervous about at that point, and all that’s left to do is go out there, give it your all, and see how things turn out.

This metaphor of putting your seed in the ground is something the Bible talks about often (Luke 8:1-15; 2 Corinthians 9:6; John 12:24; Mark 4:8, among others). So many promises in God’s Word center around sowing seeds of faith and trusting that they will turn into a harvest someday. And this is such a powerful encouragement because, so often, we feel like we are investing in the intangible things of life where it’s hard to see if the work has been worth it. We show up and put that seed of hope or faith in the ground and then wait to see what will come of it. In a fast and easy society like ours, this can feel agonizingly slow and unimportant.

But, as any athlete will tell you, it’s what you do behind the scenes and how you show up when nobody is watching that determines how you will show up when the lights are on. The quiet investment is where the real stuff is made. And, if you know that you sowed to the glory of God and have done the work He calls you to do, you have the guarantee that it will not be worthless (Isaiah 55:11).

The energy and time you have spent to invest in the lasting things of God’s Kingdom, and to be faithful in what you’ve been given, will always be blessed by God. You may not always see the fruits of it or it might not look exactly the way you planned, but it will be favored because you sowed in faith and God will honor that.

In sports or in life, “you can’t be scared of the rain if you have a seed in the ground.” So go sow to the glory of God and watch what He will do with it!

— Katherine Singer

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