SEED SOWERS

Seed Sowers

The farmer I talked about is the one who brings God’s message to others.Mark 4:14

In West Africa, people customarily sing as they work in the fields. They lift their voices as they plant in anticipation of the harvest. Perhaps this is how the farmer in the parable appeared as he walked through the field. As he tossed seed, it fell in various types of soil—some hard, some weedy, some shallow, and some good and fertile. Not once did Jesus describe the farmer as anxious; rather, he portrayed the sower as faithfully carrying out his job.

Sometimes we treat evangelism as a heavy burden. Instead of cheerfully scattering seed everywhere, we become soil testers, trying to determine whether or not the seed will flourish even before we plant. We hover over the tender shoots, trying to thwart weeds. When a seed doesn’t produce the desired fruit, we may declare ourselves failures as farmers. But God has called us to plant the message of the gospel in whatever field he places us. It is the Lord of the harvest who nourishes the tiny seeds and causes them to grow. You may never see the bushels of souls that result from seeds you planted, but you can sing as you sow and anticipate a harvest of thirty, sixty, and even a hundredfold.

GOD, I can scatter seeds in my job, my neighbourhood, my family, and plant seeds of hope in people I encounter every day. Help me to sing as I plant and be confident that many of those seeds will take root in soil that will someday produce a harvest.

PLANT A WORD OF LOVE HEART-DEEP IN A PERSON’S LIFE. NURTURE IT WITH A SMILE AND A PRAYER, AND WATCH WHAT HAPPENS.Max Lucado (b. 1955)