Comments on: Parable of the Sower Luke 8:5-15 Twenty First Sunday after Pentecost http://orthodox.net/redeemingthetime/2009/10/30/parable-of-the-sower-luke-8-5-15-twenty-first-sunday-after-pentecost/ McKinney TX Homilies, scripture commentary, spiritual reflections Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:35:39 +0000 hourly 1 By: Natalia Arzhantseva http://orthodox.net/redeemingthetime/2009/10/30/parable-of-the-sower-luke-8-5-15-twenty-first-sunday-after-pentecost/comment-page-1/#comment-2329 Natalia Arzhantseva Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:46:45 +0000 http://orthodox.net/redeemingthetime/?p=1275#comment-2329 Deborah writes: "I feel like the gardener who having failed to get the tree to produce" - this is also what disturbs me as well. It seems to me I fail everywhere. As on the one hand, I should cultivate my own ground, and on the other hand - we are all sowers...But what do we sow? and what is actually our seed? Is it good? I often think - if I fail to cultivate my own ground, do I have the moral right to sow? Can I be sure my seed is Ok for sowing? or in the eyes of God it is not, most probably not...But it should not keep me from trying to fulfill God's Commandment of love...Of course, I can only vaguely distinguish what it is, but I feel that I have to continue attempts, and learn by failures & successes, by disappointments & mistakes, remembering all the time - that my heart should be sincere & open, without being afraid to receive ingratitude in return, without even thinking of the feedback...It is very difficult, as, If I am honest with myself, I will admit that it'll be very pleasant to receive gratefulness...But this is not that important even...I'd be happy to see some positive result - someone comes to Church, someone averts from any sin, someone becomes more generous & affective to relatives...And it hurts much to witness that after all efforts, prayers, nothing of the kind happens...It is very important not to give way to despair in those cases! Especially when people are totally ungrateful, when they only use you, when they even laugh at you, when they, not remembering anything good, avert from you in a tough moment...And continue, whatever happens. This is some field, I guess, where we step over ourselves, it's a kind of thing that may bring us God's forgiveness. As it is a self-denial. As Christians should be sowers... God gives us a wonderful inspiring (as always) promise: - 1/4 of the good will be really blessed by God, and will be acceptable by Him, even if many of what we do are deviations. But the good cannot be lost. Even if it does not lead to visible results directly, it will lead to the improvement of our soul, as what we do to our neighbours with pure hearts for His sake, we do for Him. And maybe the result will be - but much later, maybe even when we leave this world...God always hears us, and if He delays - it is really only for our spiritual growth & strengthening our faith. Our patience here, our dedication & persistence - are the trial of our faith, it's affiliation, as Faith is Faith only if it goes hand-in-hand with affiliation/confession. - 1/4 of the good will ALWAYS falls on the good ground! This parable tells us this. Maybe we'll fail with someone, or even many people, maybe we'll be rejected, deceived, but someone else's ground will be good for our seed. The wind of life will carry it & it'll fall where it should fall, and will give harvest. We even maybe will not know this, bug our Heavenly Father will. And will pour out His blessing onto our "dry & thirsty land". Deborah writes: “I feel like the gardener who having failed to get the tree to produce” – this is also what disturbs me as well. It seems to me I fail everywhere. As on the one hand, I should cultivate my own ground, and on the other hand – we are all sowers…But what do we sow? and what is actually our seed? Is it good? I often think – if I fail to cultivate my own ground, do I have the moral right to sow? Can I be sure my seed is Ok for sowing? or in the eyes of God it is not, most probably not…But it should not keep me from trying to fulfill God’s Commandment of love…Of course, I can only vaguely distinguish what it is, but I feel that I have to continue attempts, and learn by failures & successes, by disappointments & mistakes, remembering all the time – that my heart should be sincere & open, without being afraid to receive ingratitude in return, without even thinking of the feedback…It is very difficult, as, If I am honest with myself, I will admit that it’ll be very pleasant to receive gratefulness…But this is not that important even…I’d be happy to see some positive result – someone comes to Church, someone averts from any sin, someone becomes more generous & affective to relatives…And it hurts much to witness that after all efforts, prayers, nothing of the kind happens…It is very important not to give way to despair in those cases! Especially when people are totally ungrateful, when they only use you, when they even laugh at you, when they, not remembering anything good, avert from you in a tough moment…And continue, whatever happens. This is some field, I guess, where we step over ourselves, it’s a kind of thing that may bring us God’s forgiveness. As it is a self-denial.

As Christians should be sowers…

God gives us a wonderful inspiring (as always) promise:
- 1/4 of the good will be really blessed by God, and will be acceptable by
Him, even if many of what we do are deviations. But the good cannot be lost. Even if it does not lead to visible results directly, it will lead to the improvement of our soul, as what we do to our neighbours with pure hearts for His sake, we do for Him. And maybe the result will be – but much later, maybe even when we leave this world…God always hears us, and if He delays – it is really only for our spiritual growth & strengthening our faith. Our patience here, our dedication & persistence – are the trial of our faith, it’s affiliation, as Faith is Faith only if it goes hand-in-hand with affiliation/confession.
- 1/4 of the good will ALWAYS falls on the good ground!
This parable tells us this. Maybe we’ll fail with someone, or even many people, maybe we’ll be rejected, deceived, but someone else’s ground will be good for our seed. The wind of life will carry it & it’ll fall where it should fall, and will give harvest. We even maybe will not know this, bug our Heavenly Father will. And will pour out His blessing onto our “dry & thirsty land”.

]]> By: Deborah http://orthodox.net/redeemingthetime/2009/10/30/parable-of-the-sower-luke-8-5-15-twenty-first-sunday-after-pentecost/comment-page-1/#comment-2327 Deborah Sat, 31 Oct 2009 07:58:42 +0000 http://orthodox.net/redeemingthetime/?p=1275#comment-2327 Father, Bless, This parable always makes me think of another of Christ's parables--the one where the owner of a fruit tree is about to cut it down because it isn't bearing any fruit. But his gardener asks the owner for a little more time to allow him to try and prune it, fertilize it and till around the tree and see if he can't get it to produce. Am I the tree, the soil or the gardener? I don't know. Sometimes I feel like the tree or the soil and that it is the prayers and work of someone beyond myself that has acted on me to deliver me from a fruitless existence. Other times I feel like the gardener who having failed to get the tree to produce, asks for more time to continue working with the soil and the tree to see if he can turn things around. Either way, I find in these sowing and gardening metaphors both the hope and the horror that I can effect the health of not only my struggling seedling, but also the health and fruitfulness of others. How often have I failed to provide water, failed to remove weeds, or packed down with my careless feet the soil in which my loved ones struggle to exist and grow? Fortunately their fruitfulness and their lives are not entirely in my sinful and neglectful hands, but certainly I do play a part. This frightens me at times to know that I am my brother's keeper, I am to fulfill the law of Christ and bear his burdens, forgive and intercede for him in prayer and cease to make temptation for him---because there is so much responsibility in these things and it is so hard. But the knowledge of this responsibility is also the knowledge of the opportunity and privilege to help, intercede and be a part of the salvation of those I love. This gives me even more motivation to listen to the great Husbandman of my soul as He teaches me what to do. And I am grateful beyond words for having been transplanted into the fertile soil of His precious Church when I was struggling to survive in a dry and thirsty land. Father, Bless,

This parable always makes me think of another of Christ’s parables–the one where the owner of a fruit tree is about to cut it down because it isn’t bearing any fruit. But his gardener asks the owner for a little more time to allow him to try and prune it, fertilize it and till around the tree and see if he can’t get it to produce. Am I the tree, the soil or the gardener? I don’t know. Sometimes I feel like the tree or the soil and that it is the prayers and work of someone beyond myself that has acted on me to deliver me from a fruitless existence. Other times I feel like the gardener who having failed to get the tree to produce, asks for more time to continue working with the soil and the tree to see if he can turn things around.

Either way, I find in these sowing and gardening metaphors both the hope and the horror that I can effect the health of not only my struggling seedling, but also the health and fruitfulness of others. How often have I failed to provide water, failed to remove weeds, or packed down with my careless feet the soil in which my loved ones struggle to exist and grow? Fortunately their fruitfulness and their lives are not entirely in my sinful and neglectful hands, but certainly I do play a part. This frightens me at times to know that I am my brother’s keeper, I am to fulfill the law of Christ and bear his burdens, forgive and intercede for him in prayer and cease to make temptation for him—because there is so much responsibility in these things and it is so hard. But the knowledge of this responsibility is also the knowledge of the opportunity and privilege to help, intercede and be a part of the salvation of those I love. This gives me even more motivation to listen to the great Husbandman of my soul as He teaches me what to do. And I am grateful beyond words for having been transplanted into the fertile soil of His precious Church when I was struggling to survive in a dry and thirsty land.

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