Sowing Tears

One of the things I have enjoyed most since I retired back in March is having more time to read. I never was that much of a reader before, but since I have had time to do things and I find myself reading The Bible more than I ever have before.

One thing I like about reading through the Bible is, no matter how many times I have read through it, I am still discovering new things. Like Monday morning for example, reading the Parable of The Sower.

I have read that parable countless times. I could probably tell you the parable if you asked me about it. So could you. But the Gospel of Luke offered up something new this week, at least for me. Words I don't remember reading before. They're in verse eight. And they're different, depending on which translation you read.

I've read through the Bible five or six times using the NIV translation. I am now reading through the Bible again using the NKJV. Look at the difference. First the NIV.

"8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.” When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” - NIV

"8 But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold.” When He had said these things He cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” - NKJV

This change of wording jumped right off the page at me. When I rad "He cried" I was thinking actual tears. I checked out other translations.

ESV - he called out.
NASB - he would call out.
KJV - he cried.

Which is it then?

So I looked and found an on-line Greek - English Interlinear Bible. The answer is, it's neither. The key word is ephonei - which translates as "he sounded or he shouted". You can read the interlinear verses for yourself here.

Still, when I read "He cried" I wondered if it didn't truly have TWO meanings - first He shouted of course, but then also He cried. Why both meanings? Read verses 11-15 of the same chapter. Jesus explains.

11 “Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. 13 But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away. 14 Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity. 15 But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience." - Luke 8:11-15

Of the four types of people in the parable, only one type is saved. Three quarters will be lost.

I guess I'd cry too, AND shout "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

The Parable of The Sower Explained - Pastor Greg Laurie

Sing Like Never Before

Well, I just got back from a Christian leadership conference. It's kind of weird, the way I'm feeling. On one hand I am feeling empowered, filled and refreshed. On the other I feel drained, convicted and humbled. All good things for a Christian.

It was good to be there with my brothers and sisters. It was kind of like being at church only it lasted 12 hours or so. I had many "take-aways" I will share with you here. Some encouraging, some scary.

1. Sing Like Never Before - Things are speeding up in this world. Biblical prophesy regarding the end times is beginning to be fulfilled. Things are ramping up. The persecution of Christians, The distancing of U.S.-Israeli relations. Earthquakes, wars, rumors of wars. Many feel that Jesus will return sometime in the next 10-15 years. That means time is short.

We sang a worship song today - 10,000 Reasons. There is a line in the chorus that spoke to me - "Sing like never before.

2. Preach The Word! We need to step up our efforts to reach the lost, to spread the Gospel, to become more bold than ever before. I often fail at this but I am going to try harder. There are just too many people who need to hear the Gospel! I need to try harder!

3. Pray more, and more effectively - Sometimes my prayers seem to be a laundry list of to-do items for God. Not good.

4. Read more - Prayer and reading are two ways that God communicates with us, through His Holy Spirit. Why would we not want to do both of those things as much as possible?

5. Learn to defend the faith better - When people ask us questions, will we have the answers? We are commanded to! When someone asks you "How can a loving God allow so much pain and suffering in the world ?" or the always popular, "How come bad things happen to good people? I'll be writing something about all these in the future. In the meantime . . .

If time is getting short, why are we sitting around doing nothing? We profess to be Christians but do we act like one? Either we don't really believe the end is near or we are simply too lazy to do anything about it. Probably the latter. We are like the disciples in the garden when Jesus went off to pray by Himself. He asked them to stay awake and keep watch. They failed just like we're doing.

"18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28:18-20

Well, I for one am going to increase my efforts. I am going to send messages, lovingly confront people, engage the world more actively for Christ. How many of these five things will you commit to join me in?

Will you pray more? Will you read your Bible more? Those two are pretty easy to do. Start there! I encourage you to try improving in all five areas this week. I double-dog dare ya! It could mean the difference between life and death . . . eternal life . . . of eternal death . . . for someone you know. That's one good reason we should do something. There are only 9,999 more reasons to go.

10,000 Reasons - Matt Redman

Blossoms

There are times we feel frustrated. I wrote about that just this past week. I was feeling frustrated. But there are also times we can feel incredibly blessed. Such was this past weekend. A weekend God showered the blessings down.

Saturday I went for a long walk. My wife and I are blessed to live right next to a state park. She and I spend hours there - walking, hiking, swimming. What a blessing it was as I went for my first extended walk of the year, just a shade over 13 miles.

I always lug all of my camera equipment along . . . just in case I see something worth remembering. I was glad I did.

I spent a lot of time early on looking for the male black bear that others have seen in the area. Nothing. Oh well. Maybe next time. But what I was really hoping to see was some early spring flowers. We had a terrible winter - long and cold. Very depressing. The sun shining brightly on Saturday was a welcome sight . . . and so were the blossoms on the forest floor.

I didn't see them right away. I had to walk for several miles before I saw any blossoms but the wait was worth it in the end. I walked through areas of the forest where oak wilt had killed many of the trees. The DNR had fenced off the area to keep the deer out. It was sad to see acre after acre of death. But out of death comes life.

This weekend I received an e-mail from our church's missionary in Turkey. His name is Brian Phipps. Brian reported that one of the men he had been witnessing to recently converted from Islam to Christianity.

Anyone see any similarity between the two pictures in this post?

We can go through seasons of drought in our lives. Being frustrated with how things are going. But when those blessings come, whether springing forth from the forest floor or rising up out of a pond of water . . .

Blessed be the name of the Lord!!
 

"24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." - John 12:24

Plant

Snow has finally left our part of the country. Things are beginning to get a little more green. There are more and more signs of life with every passing day. Most of the birds are back - the Red-Winged Blackbirds, the Sandhill Cranes, The male goldfinches are changing color from their blah winter color to that bright yellow and black color they are known for.

The streams are still swollen with the run-off the the winter's melting snow. And over at Turner's farm Market they are beginning to plant their crops. Tis the season for planting.

Sunday morning at church our pastor was preaching about the end times, the end of the world. He specifically used the text from Matthew 24. As he read the text to us we were reminded of signs to watch out for, the signs that will tell us Jesus is about to return. Jesus compared these signs to a fig tree and how we are able to tell what season it is, simply by looking to the signs it gives.

"32 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near." - Matthew 24:32

As I left the church there was a large cardboard box by the front doors. It was something for us to take home with us. Guess what was sin it? It was seeds! Seeds to plant in our gardens. Carrots, radishes, lettuce, squash. Many different seeds to plant and ultimately food to eat.

"6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building." - 1 Corinthians 3:6-9

Take a look at the picture at the top of this page. You and I are the seed planters. We're the little things that are sticking onto the ground. God in the tractor. Without Him we can do nothing. He gives us the power through His Holy Spirit. Our job is simply to plant seeds in the hearts and minds of those we meet as we walk through this world.

Who in your life needs to have some new life? Is there anyone you know that could use the saving grace of God, our Father? Plant some seeds in their lives today. And then pray for rain! :)

Did you know that King Solomon wrote the lyrics to a 60's rock song? He did. His words were put to music by a band named the Byrds. With the exception of a few minor words changes the words are taken straight from the Book of Ecclesiastes, the third chapter. King Solomon also recognized a time to plant. That time is now!

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, a time to reap that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

We have been placed on this earth for a reason. We have been called by God to "spread the Gospel to all nations." We have been called to plant seeds.plant sees. May the seeds we plant today fall on fertile soil and produce a bountiful crop at harvest time.

Turn, Turn, Turn - The Byrds