A Summer Project -- Gospel Gleanings!
I've been thinking about a summer blog project -- something that would afford me an opportunity to be more disciplined (and orderly!) in my postings here. I'm sure there will be the random post about this or that, but at least once a week, my intent is to offer a brief reflection on the Gospel reading for the upcoming Sunday. The "Gleaning" will appear every Friday, beginning today.
A Gospel Gleaning -- Mark 4:26-34 (Proper 6B)
Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is as if 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..."
This is one of the most obscure of Jesus' parables -- it's definitely not in the Top 10 of his stories! Most folks have heard about the "Sower and the Seed", many of us have heard about the "Mustard Seed" (which is at the latter part of the passage we're assigned for this Sunday). But this one -- well, it's almost a throw-away. We read right past it with little thought.
We find ourselves thinking, "Yeah, yeah...scattered seed, sprouting and growing...where's the drama? And what about a farmer who doesn't know how a seed grows? Doesn't any kid in a basic botany class know about this?"
But as I've thought about the parable, I've been reminded of an important truth: Knowledge of "how" a seed grows doesn't mean I can make it grow. For all of our agricultural science, which has decreased growing time and increased productivity, the basic facts are still in play -- a seed must be planted; there must be sufficient heat and light; water and nutrients must be available; time must transpire. And in the end, some seeds will yield an abundance of fruit and others will fail to even germinate.
As participants in God's Good News, we don't need to know "how" the Kingdom works! What a relief! We don't need to know all of the answers or anticipate every question. We are only responsible for one thing -- planting the seeds -- spreading the message.
If we plant enough seeds (that's the action part!), attend to our daily lives (that's the "sleeping and rising" part!), and remain patient (that's the hard part!), one day we will become aware that the fruit of our holy work is popping out all around us. We won't know exactly how it happened -- these dramatic results from mundane activity. But when we're up to our necks in God's abundance, will we even care?
And what will be our response to an overflow of Kingdom fruitfulness? Planting more seeds, of course!
I've been thinking about a summer blog project -- something that would afford me an opportunity to be more disciplined (and orderly!) in my postings here. I'm sure there will be the random post about this or that, but at least once a week, my intent is to offer a brief reflection on the Gospel reading for the upcoming Sunday. The "Gleaning" will appear every Friday, beginning today.
A Gospel Gleaning -- Mark 4:26-34 (Proper 6B)
Jesus said, "The kingdom of God is as if 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..."
This is one of the most obscure of Jesus' parables -- it's definitely not in the Top 10 of his stories! Most folks have heard about the "Sower and the Seed", many of us have heard about the "Mustard Seed" (which is at the latter part of the passage we're assigned for this Sunday). But this one -- well, it's almost a throw-away. We read right past it with little thought.
We find ourselves thinking, "Yeah, yeah...scattered seed, sprouting and growing...where's the drama? And what about a farmer who doesn't know how a seed grows? Doesn't any kid in a basic botany class know about this?"
But as I've thought about the parable, I've been reminded of an important truth: Knowledge of "how" a seed grows doesn't mean I can make it grow. For all of our agricultural science, which has decreased growing time and increased productivity, the basic facts are still in play -- a seed must be planted; there must be sufficient heat and light; water and nutrients must be available; time must transpire. And in the end, some seeds will yield an abundance of fruit and others will fail to even germinate.
As participants in God's Good News, we don't need to know "how" the Kingdom works! What a relief! We don't need to know all of the answers or anticipate every question. We are only responsible for one thing -- planting the seeds -- spreading the message.
If we plant enough seeds (that's the action part!), attend to our daily lives (that's the "sleeping and rising" part!), and remain patient (that's the hard part!), one day we will become aware that the fruit of our holy work is popping out all around us. We won't know exactly how it happened -- these dramatic results from mundane activity. But when we're up to our necks in God's abundance, will we even care?
And what will be our response to an overflow of Kingdom fruitfulness? Planting more seeds, of course!
posted by FrGaryB | 9:56 AM
1 Comments:
Nicely done. Thanks.
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