Thoughts for the Day

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!’

(Church in Wales Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

We have all heard the parable of the sower dozens of times, and probably all know its meaning fairly well, so I want to look at something slightly different. Have you ever tried to call a young person (or adult!) to come and eat, while they're playing a computer game? If so, you will know the difficulty. Did you even get a grunt the first five times you called their name? Or did you get the predictable response "I've just got to finish this level!"? When you think you've made headway they go back for one last attempt, or squeal when you insist on turning off the computer.

At the end of the parable of the Sower, Jesus says "Let anyone with ears listen!" He is sowing God's word, but we need to be receptive to his teaching. We need to be awake and listening to what he is saying. If we hear God's message while we are distracted by other things, then it will go in one ear and out the other, and have little or no effect on our life. We need to put aside a little time to learn more about our faith (bravo if you are reading this - you're already doing that), and then we should apply what we have learnt. So perhaps we can say: "Let anyone with ears listen, and act!"

Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the Word of Life.
May we listen and learn from Your parables,
and then live them out in the world.
May we continue to study
throughout our life,
rejoicing in Your teaching
and applying it to today.
Amen.