Thoughts from Virginia October 2018
Does it seem to you that time is flowing ever faster this year? Or, are we too busy? Here we are in October, a month in which we should be taking a breather and enjoying the fine weather and colorful foliage. Unfortunately, on the other hand, it also happens to be a month in which almost every organization schedules their big annual events and activities. We’re surrounded by distractions and demands on our time and attention. Through all this, we hope you will be able to take advantage of all the happenings that we humans construct, - but please, - take some time to appreciate this month in which we see and feel God’s Creation at its best.
Our Pastor Geoff has been doing a series of sermons through September in which the subject of bearing fruit has been a recurring theme. As we enter the month of October, with fruit of every sort ripening on all sides, and offered at roadside stands nearby, we realize how necessary ripened crops are to our very survival, in a physical sense. However, as we listen to conversations and watch the day’s news on TV or computer, we realize how much our society needs the Fruit of the Spirit, how necessary it is to our survival, in a spiritual sense.
How easy it is to be drawn away from God’s purposes and to participate in what seems so important at the time. How nice to be able to just list our obligations on our calendar and dedicate the hours and energy to each demand as each day presents itself. But then, how easy it becomes to find we have no time for reading the Word of God; how easy to limit ourselves to saying a brief prayer on the run, how easy to drop into bed too exhausted to reflect on what a friend we have in Jesus.
In His walks around the countryside, teaching and preaching, Jesus gathered large crowds. At one point, being at the seaside, he paused and addressed the crowd with the Parable of the Sower [Mark 4:1-20]: about how seed was sown and some fell on the roadside, some in rocky places, some amongst thorns and some on good ground. The seed, Jesus explained to His disciples, is the Word of God. His explanation reminded us of how we humans respond. Some, on the roadside, ignore it altogether and are lost. Some, as in rocky places, receive the seed but, don’t allow it to take root, and fall away from their faith under the pressures of affliction or persecution. We hope you are not either of these types of people.
A third type of people receive the Word gladly; but, surrounded and choked by the busyness of their lives, and the temptations around them, lose their initial enthusiasm and, ultimately, become unfruitful. A fourth group, in which the seed has fallen on good ground, hear the Word and take it to heart. These bring forth fruit.
Most of us live lives that include much coming and going. Many carry variations of “smartphones”, and are ever attuned to what is too often meaningless chatter. Cares, desires and distractions surround us. Obligations overwhelm us. Until all of this static in our lives is weeded out, we risk being choked and unfruitful. We encourage you to step back periodically, when life gets a little too hectic, consider where you’re heading. Look around and see where you can bear fruit. It doesn’t have to be an earthshaking act, but it will be your way of bringing God’s touch to someone, with the same beauty as when God touches a maple leaf in October. Virginia
Then Jesus asked them: “Don’t you understand this parable?... The sower sows God’s message. Sometimes the message falls along the path; these people hear it, but as soon as they hear it Satan comes and takes away the message sown in them. Other people are like the seeds that fall on rocky ground. As soon as they hear the message they receive it gladly. But it does not sink deep into them, and they don’t last long. So when trouble or persecution comes because of the message, they give up at once. Other people are like the seeds sown among the thorns. These are the ones who hear the message, but the worries about this life, the love for riches, and all other desires crowd in and choke the message, and they don’t bear fruit. But other people are like the seed sown in good soil. They hear the message, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirty, some sixty, and some one hundred.
Mark 4:13-20 Good News for Modern Man