SEED

A successful Christian business man was growing old and knew it was time
to choose a successor to take over the business. Instead of choosing one
of his directors or his children, he decided to do something different.

He called all the young executives in his company together. He said, "It
is time for me to step down and choose the next CEO. I have decided to
choose one of you. "The young executives were shocked, but the boss
continued. "I am going to give each one of you a SEED today - one very
special SEED. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and come back here
one year from today with what you have grown from the seed I have given
you. I will then judge the plants that you bring, and the one I choose
will be the next CEO".

One man, named Jim, was there that day and he, like the others, received
a seed. He went home and excitedly, told his wife the story. She helped
him get a pot, soil and compost and he planted the seed. Everyday, he
would water it and watch to see if it had grown. After about three weeks,
some of the other executives began to talk about their seeds and the
plants that were beginning to grow. Jim kept checking his seed, but
nothing ever grew. Three weeks, four weeks, five weeks went by, still
nothing.

By now, others were talking about their plants, but Jim didn't
have a plant and he felt like a failure. Six months went by--still
nothing in Jim's pot. He just knew he had killed his seed. Everyone else
had trees and tall plants, but he had nothing. Jim didn't say anything to
his colleagues, however. He just kept watering and fertilizing the soil -
He so wanted the seed to grow.

A year finally went by and all the young executives of the company
brought their plants to the CEO for inspection. Jim told his wife that he
wasn't going to take an empty pot. But she asked him to be honest about
what happened. Jim felt sick at his stomach, it was going to be the most
embarrassing moment of his life, but he knew his wife was right. He took
his empty pot to the board room. When Jim arrived, he was amazed at the
variety of plants grown by the other executives. They were beautiful--in
all shapes and sizes.

Jim put his empty pot on the floor and many of his colleagues laughed,
a few felt sorry for him! When the CEO arrived, he surveyed the room and
greeted his young executives. Jim just tried to hide in the back. "My,
what great plants, trees, and flowers you have grown," said the CEO.
"Today one of you will be appointed the next CEO!"

All of a sudden, the CEO spotted Jim at the back of the room with his
empty pot. He ordered the financial director to bring him to the front.
Jim was terrified. He thought, "The CEO knows I'm a failure! Maybe he
will have me fired!" When Jim got to the front, the CEO asked him what
had happened to his seed - Jim told him the story. The CEO asked everyone
to sit down except Jim. He looked straight at Jim, and then announced to
the young executives, "Behold your next Chief Executive! His name is Jim!

"Jim couldn't believe it. Jim couldn't even grow his seed. How could he
be the new CEO the others said? Then the CEO said, "One year ago today,
I gave everyone in this room a seed. I told you to take the seed, plant
it, water it, and bring it back to me today. But I gave you all boiled
seeds; they were dead - it was not possible for them to grow. All of you,
except Jim, have brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found
that the seed would not grow, you substituted another seed for the one I
gave you.

Jim was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot
with my seed in it. Therefore, he is the one who will be the new Chief
Executive!"

If you plant honesty, you will reap trust,If you plant goodness, you will
reap friends If you plant humility, you will reap greatness. If you plant
perseverance, you will reap contentment, If you plant consideration, you
will reap perspective, If you plant hard work, you will reap success, If
you plant forgiveness, you will reap reconciliation, If you plant faith
in Christ, you will reap a harvest So, be careful what you plant now; it
will determine what you will reap later.