It’s a relatively quiet time. I hear chainsaws and leaf blowers in the background as my neighbors prepare their yards for the coming season, but the sounds fade away as I watch that seedling, carried to the ground by the wind and gravity.
…What may be known about God is plain to them because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. Romans 1:18-20.
Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear. Matthew 13:3-9
“What is that maple seed telling me?”
Science, Seeds and Me
Not all maple trees produce seed in the same season. Ecclesiastes tells us that there's season, time and purpose for everything. If I'm not getting a lot of seeds right now. That's OK. The season for seed will come.Maple trees produce seed based on what the other maples in the area are doing. The magic of pollination and proximity seem to affect how many seeds are produced. If I'm not getting a lot seeds right now, maybe I need to find some seed producers to hang around.
Maple seed production is affected by stress. Christians run screaming from most of Darwin's theories, but survival of the fittest is the real deal. When a tree is stressed, it produces more fruit to ensure there will be more maples in the future. If I'm not producing seeds, I need to ask am I too comfortable, too satisfied, OK with the way things are? If I'm become apathetic or if I'm just going through the motions I'm not likely to produce seeds. Loving people, getting involved in their lives is stressful, but there's a harvest of seed that comes from that stress. Comfort is not a good thing.
In seasons when the Holy Spirit is raining seeds on me: seeds of truth, wisdom and people. What happens to that now-landed seed is entirely up to me.
Rocky Ground
If my heart and mind are stony, stubborn and cold, there is no welcoming environment for the seed to grow. It will dry up and die. Tenderheartedness–toward people and toward God–is a good thing. If I am caught up in my own personal comfort zone, unwilling to part with tradition or refuse to accept the call of the gospel to love my neighbor as myself, seeds will never germinate in my life.
Thorny Ground
My brain is a constant tangle of thoughts, doubts, noises, to-do lists and pursuit of momentary satisfaction. I struggle with wanting instant results, wanting to please everyone and wanting to be the best at work, the best at home, the best at church, the best at smallgroup and the best in my neighborhood. All that striving, all the brain and heart power that it takes to give my all to everybody while coping with the negative voices in my head can easily choke out the seeds God sends my way, robbing them of light and an opportunity to grow. If I can't "let go and let God," I'll never be the man God wants me to be.
Good Ground
I'm not called to be everything to everybody. God gave me a tongue and a helpmate to say, "no," sometimes. Sabbath is a holy institution. We have to make time for rest, give ourselves a break, slow down to read the Bible, pray, listen to others and just be in the moment. We have to question society's definitions of success and the expectations of the people who are not directly involved in our lives and instead ask, "What does God want? Is being busier or always available glorifying to him, or am is no one getting my best. I need to create good ground -- meditate on the seeds God sends, search the scriptures about them, pray about them and share them with my brothers and my family, so that it will germinate, take root and produce fruit in my life.
Church and Seeds
But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. John 16:13I’ve never understood the misplaced church training programs and pulpit pleas that teach us the Romans Road, the FAITH explanation, The Way of the Master and countless other evangelism packages. I suppose they have their place, by I’m not a fan of the kind of kamikaze evangelism that bombs strangers with truth and urges them to make a decision on the spot. That’s not how Jesus made disciples, and that is what he commissioned his followers to do, isn't it?
That maple seed suggests another way.
The Holy Spirit is always calling, always revealing, always moving in the hearts of potential believers.
Could it be that God is continuously sending seeds in the hope that his church has provided a fertile, sunny, nurturing place to land?
Could it be that Jesus was talking about the church in his parable?
Rocky Ground
Imagine that the Holy Spirit has moved in a man. He visits a church that is so structured, so dogmatic, so inwardly focused that no one greets him at the door, no element of the worship service or message is challenging and there’s not opportunity to ask questions. That Spirit-called seed landed on tradition-laden, impersonal rocky ground and likely withered.
Thorny Ground
What if that man visits another church? He’s invited in, but he's immediately given a list of dos and a separate list of don’ts. He’s required to attend a class, sign a letter, promise to give his money and get involved in a project. No one asks if he has a Bible. No one sits down with him one-on-one. No one asks why he came. That Spirit-called seed landed among law-driven, works-oriented thorns and was choked by the bureaucracy of the church.
Good Ground
But, what if that man visits a third church? He’s welcomed, paired with a mentor, given an opportunity to ask questions, handed a Bible and invited out for coffee. He makes a friend or two or three. He can ask questions in a safe, judgment-free zone. His mentor shares how following Jesus made him better, gave him the answers he was searching for and provided meaning and purpose to his life. That Spirit-called seed landed on graceful good soil. He grows. He follows Jesus. He becomes a friend. He mentors other Spirit-called seeds that land near him.
Every church should take a hard look to see if it is providing rocky, thorny or good ground for seeds to land, but let's face it, that starts with the individual.
I hear you, little seed.
I need to lead my church to welcome people and help them learn and grow.
I need to cultivate good ground in my life to nurture seeds of faith in my heart so that I can later produce fruit.
I need to welcome the events of the past year as stress that will produce seeds and prepare for the harvest.
I need to eschew my personal comfort for the benefit of others. Seeds have to risk the dirt to take root. They may be stepped on, get too hot, suffer cold, get thirsty, but all those things help it to take root, get strong and produce.
I welcome the seeds, and I pray for good ground in my life.
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