Scattering Seeds of Faith

Yesterday's Gospel was Mark 4:26-34 which includes two parables - the parable of growing seed and the parable of the mustard seed.  The mustard seed often gets more attention but I was really drawn to the parable of growing seed and how this guy does not know how the seed he scatters grows.  Right now as a congregation, Bethlehem is scattering a lot of seeds - trying to get the word out into the community that we are in the midst of doing God's work in this world and we want others to join us in that mission.  And at the same time we are ready for the harvest - wanting the results of all that seed scattering to be instantaneous.  


So here is my sermon from Sunday - or at least the one I wrote - I didn't actually refer to it much when I was preaching.


Enjoy!

We do not know how seeds grow.  Even with all the science that has happened in the last 2 thousand years, our understanding of just way a seed grows when it does has not changed much since when Jesus uttered those words from today’s gospel “someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how.”  Yes we know that seeds need water and sunlight and the temperature to be within a certain range and certain seeds should be planted at certain times of year, but again we do not know why a seed decides to grow when it does. 

Almost 2 months ago I planted 9 tiger lily bulbs in my garden – thus far only 7 have sprouted – and there was about 3 weeks between the first sprouts appearing and the latest.  What about the other 2 blubs?  Why did it take so much less time for some than for others to sprout?  Some seeds can lay dormant for years before they sprout, others like the jack pine need fire in order to start the growth process.  Some seeds grow instantaneously, some seeds take years to produces more seeds. But what any farmer or gardener can tell you, is you sow way more seeds than you grow. 

And the same is true for the seeds of faith that we sow.  We do not know which seeds will take and which ones will sprout instantly and which ones will take years to develop. Right now as a church we are spreading seeds of faith.  Through things like the block party we are getting the word out there that we as a congregation are here doing God’s work in this world and we would love it for others to join us on this mission.  And yet we are ready for the harvest – we are ready to open wide the doors and take people in one after another.  But the harvest is not yet, but trust me it is coming.

We still need to nurture those seeds of faith and even plant some more.  The average person needs to be personally invited to worship 7 times before they actually come.  7 times!  Can you imagine turning a friend down for a dinner invitation 7 times?  But yet it takes that long because worship is more than dinner. 

Worship gets down to our core – worship is a place where we admit that we are not as great as we might like to be.  Worship is a time when we admit that we are vulnerable.  Worship is a time when we come together as a community.  Worship is a time when we give up of ourselves and instead focus on God.  Therefore it takes more than just saying you are willing to go to dinner with someone. 

But trust me, I see you spreading the seeds of faith.  I see you inviting people to worship.  I hear you talking about how you see and experience God in your daily life.  I’ve discuss with you people that you care for that do not worship on a regular basis that you really want to see having a stronger relationship with God.  But you need to keep inviting, keep talking about your experiences of God, keep discussing how your relationship with God has helped you in life and why you want others to experience that. 

The seeds are there, they are being sown, and they will sprout and grow, we just do not know how.  And the absolutely great thing about these seeds of faith, is just like a mustard bush, which is actually a weed and will quickly spread and take over where it is not wanted, the seeds of faith, the seeds of God’s love will quickly spread and take over where it is not wanted.