A Personal Parable: Sowing Seeds 

    Earlier in July, I preached a sermon on the sower of seeds parable. It was entitled, “Sowing Seeds for an
 Abundant Harvest.” Jesus begins the parable this way: “A sower went out to sow.” Now I’m not a very good
 gardener and would never make it as a farmer. But as I was nearing the completion of the sermon, this parable
 struck me in a very personal way. The parable is applicable for our church, and it certainly has been true in my
 life over the years.

    God sows seeds with reckless abandon throughout our lives. Many of the seeds may never take root and
 grow. I found that out first hand while trying to plant sunflower seeds in our backyard earlier this summer–still
 no sign of sunflowers! But God plants an abundance of seeds with the hope and belief that some may grow.

    Over the years, many people have planted seeds in my life – friends, parents, family members, teachers,
 mentors, pastors, basketball coaches, faithful churches … the list goes on. At the time I probably didn’t even
 realize how many people were scattering spiritual seeds in my life. At times their efforts went unnoticed or
 unappreciated, but that did not stop them from planting seeds in a faithful manner. You have probably had
 people who planted spiritual seeds in your life. Thank God for salty, faithful Christians who just keep planting
 the seeds, while trusting God for the harvest.

    The same can be true for churches. Our church has sown seeds in the lives of many over the years. Those
 who are active and faithful are evidence of the spiritual fruit. Through your commitment to mission and ministry
 in the community, an abundant harvest is being realized. This is fertile soil. What you sow comes back many
 fold in the form of an abundant harvest for God.

    Newer people who come to the church have told me how much they appreciate the warm welcome and
 care they have received. Prayers have been answered, and lives have been changed. We continue to be the
 recipients of many blessings. When the soil is rich and fertile, good things happen. It is a basic principle of
 farming. Good soil can continue to produce an abundant harvest for years to come. When the spiritual soil is
 rich and fertile, it’s only natural to want to share the blessings with others. Those who have had good seeds
 sown in their lives often become a sower of seed for others as a way of saying, “Thank you.”

    So let this be your parable. May spiritual seeds find rich and fertile soil in the fields where you live, and may
 you scatter seeds for others in the same manner in which you received. The message in the end is clear and
 simple: Keep on growing, and keep on sowing. This will allow God to realize an abundant harvest here for
 many years to come.

 In Christ,

 Pastor Jeffrey