There was a business consultant who decided to landscape his grounds. He hired a woman with a doctorate in horticulture who was extremely knowledgeable. Because the business consultant was very busy and traveled a lot, he kept emphasizing to her the need to create his garden in a way that would require little or no maintenance on his part. He insisted on automatic sprinklers and other labor-saving devices.
Finally she stopped and said, “There’s one thing you need to deal with before we go any further. If there’s no gardener, then there is no garden!”
There are no labor-saving devices for growing a garden of spiritual virtue. Becoming a person of spiritual fruitfulness requires time, attention and care. How many of us are like that business consultant? We’re very busy during the week and get caught up in work and social activities and don’t spend the time we need to work on our spiritual growth? Then we come into church on Sunday for a re-charge, feeding off the energy of those around us. How many times during the week are you running really low on your spiritual food by Wednesday or Thursday and do nothing about it?
One thing that is needed in all of these situations is God. Whether God is providing the rain from Heaven to water the earth making it bud and flourish. Whether God is placing people together to form relationships that lead to life-long commitments. Whether God is giving us the words to speak to our fellow people that allow the Holy Spirit to plant seeds in the lives of those we encounter. Whatever the seed we’re talking about, God has full control of it.
And just what are those Seeds? They are the Word of God.
In the Gospel lesson, we hear the parable of the sower and the different soils that the seeds have been scattered upon. Within our lives, we encounter each of these soils daily. Ideally, the only soil that should be in our lives is the good soil that produces abundantly what was sown. Life isn’t that easy. It is only when we take the soil that is given us, cultivate it, fertilize it, and properly nourish it that the soil produces a good harvest. That doesn’t always happen in our lives because we allow ot her things to come in and control our lives.
Take the soil next to the road and the birds that came along and ate the seeds. We sometimes associate with people that don’t live their lives according to God’s Will. Perhaps these are people that take God’s Word away from our heart. Perhaps these people are involved in bad things and they get you to join or follow them. You know what they’re doing is wrong, but you associate with them anyway. Whatever it is, these people cause you to doubt what God has planted in your life. How many times are we these people? Running around doing things that snatch away seeds from others?
As for the seeds that fell on rocky soil and grew up and withered away. It seems more and more we rely on ourselves to get the job done right instead of trusting God to provide for us. Do we help our fellow neighbor with whatever their need is? Or do we run around bragging to others about the help we provided? Do we take these things that we need to get done and lift them to God in prayer? God’s Word does not sink in deeply for these people and when the time of testing their faith comes, they fall short.
Finally, the thorny soil. This would represent our daily worries. People we care about, our finances, the weather, health, travel, you name it and we worry about it…. we’re human after all! It doesn’t matter how much we worry about these things because we’re not going to be able to change the outcome. Remember Y2K? God must be laughing at us about that one. We worried a lot, spent gobs and gobs of money, and worried some more on top of it all. And in the end it all was for naught. January 1, 2000 came and went with barely a whimper. God provided in our time of need. When we worry so much and place our trust in things other than God, we allow the things of this world to choke the seeds within us instead of allowing our faith to grow.
“Still other seeds fall on good soil where they produced an abundant crop.” What a comfort to know that in the midst of everything around us there still in good soil within us. That good soil continues to be nourished when we hear God’s Word, when we pray and when we turn our worries and cares over to God.
Jesus admonishes us to take our time and sow everywhere. But why do that? Why waste our time and energy sowing in places where you don’t know whether or not it will bear fruit? Why not just sow the soil that you know will get you the best harvest? Jesus throughout the gospel encourages his followers, telling them that much of their work will be wasted effort and promising them that God will bring forth results far exceeding their expectations. You’ve seen how our ministry has grown over the last few years. And Whosoever, who would’ve dreamed it would become as big as it has? Put your faith in God. Sow those seeds everywhere! You’ll be surprised where those seeds start popping up and taking root.
This is why Christ came to this earth. He knew that there was no way we could ever make the soil within us good enough to produce any crop, so Christ lived the perfect life that we couldn’t. He took upon Himself all of the sin that is around us daily. On the Cross, He shed His blood in order to purify the soil within us to make it good. Not only for that time, but also for all times to come. Christ rose from the dead in order to continue to cultivate, to plow, and fertilize our lives in the manner that is best for us.
So what can you do to “sow those seeds?” One thing is to Pray in the morning folks! When you first get up….you’ve heard Pastor Paul talk about it before and I am again now because I’ve seen the results. I no longer feel spiritually drained by mid-week. Try to say your prayer when you first get up while your mind is still very open and the world hasn’t come crashing in yet. For some, like me, it might not be the very first thing out of your head. Some are thinking of using the bathroom, taking a shower, getting that first cup of coffee, smoking a cigarette or walking the dog. The earlier in the day you say this prayer, the better. Don’t let life catch up with you and take your focus off of God.
Face it; everyday you face hundreds of choices. Every morning when we wake up, our whole day is a myriad of challenges, and we become the sum total of the choices that we make. Sometimes it’s hard to make the right choices, and if you don’t, you suffer the consequences. So every morning when you get up say, “God, help me to make the right choices today.” I feel the difference saying that prayer makes.
Another way to “sow your seeds” is to follow Christ’s example of love. Matthew writes in Chapter 22 “YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.” And “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.” Jesus stresses that these are the two greatest commandments of them all. Go out and be kind to your neighbor, your co-worker, your friends and strangers you come into contact with. Treat others the way you want them to treat you.
Take the time in your everyday life to do your sowing. Whether it’s saying a prayer in the morning, praying during the day for those around you and for your fellow churchgoers, committing a random act of kindness to a stranger or just biting your tongue and not lashing out at someone who has committed a wrong against you.
Whatever the situation is, go and sow the seeds of love everywhere. God will take those seeds and multiply them in such a way that your life will be richly blessed.