When a passage of Scripture is personally and directly brought to my attention repeatedly in less than 24 hours, it would be reckless for me not to take heed.

Lying in bed one recent evening, I randomly picked up a nearby book that had been given to me around the time of Judson’s death and for the first time, began to read it.  Not far into the first chapter, I stopped dead in my tracks as I read John 12:24 in relation to the legacy of a man who had passed away in 1996; through his death multiple seeds of faith and hope were being sown.  Until then, I had not noted this verse from this perspective before.  I read it again and again, wondering the context, curious as to the direct or indirect reference, but also somehow filled with tremendous hope that God might be speaking about his ability to redeem someone’s death by powerfully using it for his kingdom. 

The very next morning in a conversation with a friend from church, she mentioned the exact same verse.  After all the pondering I had done about those words the night before, I stood there baffled that she had just referenced John 12:24 in relation to my journey and the life of Judson.

Later that day, in the early afternoon, I opened my front door and discovered a gift and card from a another friend who was remembering the second anniversary of Judson’s homegoing.  When I opened the card, hand written on the top left was John 12:24. 

My tears began to flow.

Compelled to look up the passage, I discovered that Jesus was actually predicting his own death; the horrible crucifixion that awaited him would lead to the redemption of many souls—the Great Kernel producing many seeds.

In a week of brokenness commemorating the death, memorial service, and burial of my Judson, it spoke hope to my heart on multiple levels, particularly that even the tiniest of seeds can be united with Christ in his mission, death, and resurrection.