I have always loved autumn..it is my favourite time of year
“Seasons of mist and mellow fruitfulness”
I’m with Keats rather than RS Thomas
The seasons fly;
The flowers wither
The leaves lie on the ground. Listen
To the sad song
of the reapers “Ripe
corn”, as over the seas
the birds go
Suddenly the year ends
I relish the scent of decomposing leaves in the woodlands, delight at trudging through autumn leaves, watching the acorns and conkers nestle down in the welcoming humus
Knowing in a few months I will see tiny green shoots poking out of the well-trodden mat of dead leaves.
The circle of life
An ending but also a beginning
Out of dying comes new birth
We celebrate the harvest and give thanks, but we also anticipate the crop of next year
The circle of life
When you look at your life today, what is different to a year ago, 5, 10, 20,30?
Not how has the world changed, but
How have you changed?
Have your values changed, are the priorities that guide and direct your life different?
Has your faith changed? Your spirituality?
How do you see the world…and yourself?
What troubles your soul or breaks your heart?
And over all these years
What seeds have germinated and taken root in you?
What new shoots are revealing themselves?
And how did any of this happen?
When I look back I am the same but different
I’ve been a daughter, granddaughter, sister, student, friend, wife, teacher, mother, aunt, churchwarden, Reader
I am still me but at the same time so much of me has changed
For the better I hope!
I am finally where I am meant to be, where I believe God wants me to be
Thanks to all the seeds sown in me
When we celebrated my licensing as a reader a year ago today I shared the words of Miles Davis, which resonate with me so strongly
Sometimes it takes a long time to sound like yourself
And I guess we could all tell a similar personal story
We are who we are partly because seeds have been sown in each one of us, both deliberately and at random, just as in the natural world
Somebody says a word, does something, reaches out, prays for you, smiles at you….maybe just a look
And something settles in, beds in
We don’t always realise it and even if we do, we don’t always know if the seeds will take root and grow
And of course we sow seeds in others, with a word, an idea, an act of kindness, a smile, a helping hand.
We may sense something growing in us… a dynamism in our lives, a spirit, the Spirit moving within us
We may spend years wondering and wandering, hoping and looking, not knowing what may be unfurling within us
Until one day we notice the tip of a green shoot
How did that happen?
This is the way God works in our lives
This is the message Jesus has for us
I have asked a lot of questions
Jesus’ parable offers no answers….parables don’t do that. Often they ask better questions and give us some work to do. Parables offer us a different lens through which to see the world, and maybe seeing differently is the beginning we need.
Our lives are like a garden that has been planted with seeds. It takes time, and a lot happens underground, hidden within the soil of our lives. There’s a lot of waiting, and then one day…
First the stalk, then the head, then the full grain
The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground
Who are the someones in our lives?
Who has scattered seeds on the grounds of your life, and what were they?
Who are the people who have loved and encouraged you, offered you wisdom and guidance, spoken difficult truths to you when it has been needed?
Who has awakened you, inspired you, given you hope?
And of course we are seed scatterers in the lives of others.
Who have you encouraged, inspired, loved, advised, forgiven, just been with?
And there is soil out there waiting to be planted with your life, your gifts, your passion….at work, in your family, in your friends, in your community.
There are seeds waiting to be sown, watered, loved and nurtured.
As Jesus tells us, even the tiniest seed can grow into something extraordinary.
Faith to flourish, hope to grow, imagination to be stimulated
So let us be productive gardeners, be careful to sow good seeds, no disrespect to Nick Cave intended.
Paul encourages the Corinthians….and us…. with three simple verbs
SOW REAP SHARE
We all have something to sow, and we can be generous and give freely
We will all reap the benefit of God’s grace…in abundance.
And we are to share.
Especially in our thanksgiving to God
So we do so, we thank God for his creation, for his generosity and above all his love…let us share that and sow good seeds in the world around us.
Amen
Comments