Painting: The Sower by VanGoghLike an excellent preacher, Jesus uses examples that are familiar to his hearers. A part of the life of his contemporaries was, of course, agriculture. Most of the people knew the ups and downs of planting and harvesting. They knew all too well of the times when the plantings did not result in a good harvest.
The story of the sower was one way Jesus tried to teach his followers and us that God is always planting seeds in our lives, the seeds of his graces. However, as bountiful as God might be as the divine sower, some people never allow those blessings to come into their lives. Others engage the blessings for a time but eventually allow them to die for lack of nourishment. Some are caught up with great excitement but soon find those blessings strangled by the felt needs for things, for power, for pleasures that kill any growth of the blessings. Some, however, accept the gift and continue throughout their lives to make the blessing shine like a treasured piece of silver or gold.
Like the farmers, God continues planting the seeds of his blessings for all of us. Some may walk away from God, but his love for us is without reservation. He continues to follow after us, giving us the means to become one day a part of his kingdom.
