It’s been eight years since I’ve written a Sunday Summary. When I was writing regularly, they were Sammy’s favorite posts. I would talk about the sermon, church events, and general things we did throughout the day; sometimes exciting, sometimes mundane little details.
Today’s message came from Matthew 13, the parable of the sower. Summer seems a most appropriate season for this message because it’s the time when many are sowing seeds, reaping harvests and sharing their bounty. In the parable, Jesus talks about the importance of sowing into good soil, properly prepared for planting. Still, even when the soil is ideal and well prepared and the farmer is equipped with advanced tools and the power of science to make stronger seeds and healthier plants; while they grow, there are still many threats we are unable to control before the time of harvest. The feasibility of bringing in a harvest of a hundred fold is unfathomable.
Could we ever hope to be the seed sowed into good soil? The seed that hears the word and understands, the seed that bears fruit, the seed that yields that unfathomable harvest?
One definition of God’s providence is God’s involvement in all of the everyday, routine, parts of our lives. He’s there when the seeds are devoured, when they wither away without having rooted and when they are choked away by invasive weeds and of course, he is there when the seed takes root, flourishes, grows and bears fruit. He gives the increase.
All the talk of sowing seeds stayed on my mind throughout the day. After a nice dinner of slow cooked steaks, sweet potatoes and sauteed zucchini with bell peppers and onions, we gathered up a plate for a church member and delivered it to her and she gave us tomatoes from her own garden and some squash and cucumbers that she had been given. We stood outside and chatted with her for a while. Then, we left and went to the store to secure a gallon of tea.
All those moments of the evening brought us to the cash register, where we talked with our cashier about the food stamps having been down all evening and how customers had left abandoned carts, and employees had unpleasant encounters with customers who were angry. As we were paying, we both noticed a mama and her young boy a few registers over. She didn’t have much. We could tell by the interaction with her cashier that she was paying with food stamps and elected to leave her items behind when she learned that she would be unable to use her food stamps. As she was walking by, I quietly asked her if she would allow us to buy her items. She seemed to hesitate, but then agreed. It turned out to be two cans of infant formula, a box of Krabby Patties candy and two Sprites.
I’m fully convinced God brought us together at that moment to both plant a seed and bear fruit. And that’s the mystery of God’s providence. He is good and cares for us all, cares to give us opportunities to bear fruit, cares enough to keep that mama from having to leave the store without food for her baby and even cares about Krabby Patties.
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