Last week was a very special one in my home. My brother visited from Nigeria, bringing with him not only the familiar warmth, laughter, and nostalgia of home, but also what I would later come to recognize as a special blessing.
My brother is a great man of God, and although his visit was already a blessing in itself, something happened while he was here that reminded me of how God sometimes hides His blessings in the most unexpected places. This particular blessing had been hiding right under my nose, in my garden!
One
evening, we stepped into the backyard to harvest some bitterleaf, okra, and
waterleaf. As I bent down to cut some waterleaf, something caught my attention.
Wait a
minute! Tucked away at the very bottom of one of my pepper plants, almost
completely concealed by its own leaves and the thick waterleaf surrounding it,
were three beautiful, good-sized green bell peppers!
Three!
I
couldn’t believe my eyes. Where had these been hiding? And how had I managed to
miss them all this time? You see, these were not just any bell peppers. Their
story began in a rather unusual place. My kitchen scraps!
Earlier
in the spring, I had collected some kitchen scraps to make organic fertilizer
for my garden. I placed the scraps in a container, added water, and let the
mixture ferment for several days before pouring it into my raised beds. One
of those beds held my waterleaf plants, which were just beginning to spring up.
Apparently,
some bell pepper seeds had found their way into that mixture. And somewhere
between the kitchen scraps, the water, and the soil, those little seeds decided
they had a future in my garden.
Before
long, tiny pepper plants began emerging among my waterleaf. Now, I must
confess, I didn’t take them very seriously. After all, these were seeds from
fresh bell peppers I had bought for cooking, not seeds I had carefully selected
from a gardening packet. I wasn’t convinced they would amount to much. But the
little plants seemed to have other plans.
Slowly
but surely, they grew. During the harsh summer months, they even produced a few
flowers. Unfortunately, the heat was unforgiving, and those flowers withered
before they could become fruits. I figured that was probably the end of their
story. But apparently, nobody told the peppers!
As
summer gave way to fall and the temperatures became more forgiving, the pepper
plants began flowering again. I noticed the flowers, admired them briefly, and
went about my gardening business. Once again, I didn’t expect much. I was
already preparing to wrap up the gardening season. Some plants were fading,
others were producing their final harvests, and I had begun collecting mature
seeds to preserve for next spring. The peppers were simply part of the
greenery. Or so I thought.
Then
came that evening with my brother.
And there
they were! Three beautiful green bell peppers, quietly growing and maturing
beneath the leaves, without any announcement, without demanding attention, and
certainly without my expecting them. What a delightful surprise!
As I
reflected over this, I couldn’t help thinking about something much bigger than
bell peppers. The beauty of hidden blessings. Sometimes, blessings arrive
exactly where and when we expect them. We pray, we work, we wait, and
eventually, something happens. We recognize the blessing because we have been
watching and waiting for it.
But then
there are those other blessings. The quiet ones. The unexpected ones. The ones growing beneath the leaves of our everyday lives, completely
unnoticed. They don’t announce themselves. They don’t demand our attention.
Sometimes, we don’t even realize they exist until one ordinary day, when we
least expect it!
A great
reminder of God’s grace and provision.
Who
would have imagined that something I considered kitchen waste would eventually
produce fresh, beautiful peppers? What I didn’t expect to bear fruit quietly
did!
LIFE,
huh?
As I
reflected, something else struck me. Although I hadn’t expected the peppers to
produce anything, I did not neglect them. Whenever I watered my waterleaf, I watered the peppers too. Whenever I added manure to nourish the waterleaf,
the peppers benefited as well. I allowed them to grow, gave them room among the
other plants, and admired the greenery they added to my raised bed. I wasn’t
necessarily nurturing them because I expected a harvest. I simply tended what
was growing in my garden.
And
somehow, that quiet, consistent care made a difference.
Sometimes,
the things we nurture without expecting anything in return become the very
things that surprise us with the most pleasant rewards.
Think
about it.
The
kindness you show someone without expecting appreciation. The encouragement you
offer when nobody seems to notice. The prayers you whisper over situations that
appear unchanged. The time, love, and effort you invest in your family, your
relationships, your work, or even your personal growth. Sometimes, it may feel
as though nothing is happening. But what if something is growing beneath the
leaves? What if the roots are getting stronger? What if the season simply
hasn’t been right for the flowers to become fruit?
My peppers
flowered during the summer, but the heat was too harsh for those flowers to
survive. When fall came, the same plants, growing in the same soil, finally
found the conditions they needed to bear fruit. Sometimes, what looks like
an unproductive season is simply a season of preparation. And sometimes, the
harvest comes when we have almost stopped looking for it.
As I
begin putting my garden to rest for the year, these unexpected peppers have
given me one more lesson to carry into the coming seasons. And perhaps that is
the message I want to leave with you today.
Whatever
season of life you find yourself in, don’t underestimate the value of the quiet
work you are doing. Keep showing up. Keep giving your best. Keep extending
kindness, even when it goes unnoticed. Keep nurturing the relationships,
dreams, and responsibilities entrusted to you. And when something seems slow,
silent, or unproductive, don’t be too quick to conclude that nothing good can
come from it.
Of course,
not every seed will grow, and not every effort will produce the harvest we
imagine. Sometimes, wisdom also means knowing when to let go. But don’t allow
the absence of visible results to convince you that your efforts have no value.
Sometimes, God uses the smallest, most ordinary things to remind us that His grace is still at work. The Bible encourages us in Galatians 6:9: And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” (Galatians 6:9, KJV). I also find comfort in Romans 8:28, which reminds us that God works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose.
So,
keep planting. Keep watering. Keep nurturing. And keep your heart open to unexpected blessings.
As for my
three green bell peppers, I haven’t decided whether they will end up in a
salad, a pot of jollof rice, or something else. But one thing is certain.
When I
finally harvest and prepare them, I will remember that beautiful evening with
my brother, the laughter and warmth of family, and the little surprise waiting
and hiding away beneath the pepper plant. And I will smile.
Because
sometimes, the sweetest blessings aren't the ones we have been watching and waiting for, but the ones God lets us discover when we least expect them. And
to think that mine began with kitchen scraps!
Who
would have thought?
“Do not despise the quiet seasons of your life. Some of the most pleasant blessings are growing where you least expect them. Keep nurturing what matters, trusting God with what you cannot yet see.”
Garden & Reflections offers a glimpse into the experiences and everyday lessons that shape me beyond the therapy room. These personal reflections are shared thoughtfully while honoring the professional boundaries of the counseling relationship.