Sermon (June 13) by Rev. Robert McDowell

   I don’t feel that I’m a very patient person. Here’s an example. When I put something in the microwave, I sometimes will impatiently say, “Hurry up. What’s taking you so long!”  You know, it’s pretty bad if you find yourself telling your microwave to hurry up.

     That’s why I think our Gospel reading was written just for me and for people who struggle with being patient. Jesus told this parable to explain what the Kingdom of God is like. Jesus compares God’s kingdom to someone who sows seeds.

     Ok, I can tell right away, that I’m not going to like this parable. I grew up on a farm that included a great big garden so I know where this parable is going. Jesus is going to tell us that it takes time to build the kingdom and that it won’t be an overnight process.

     Oh great. Well, that just means that I’m going to have to wait and I don’t like to wait. I want to see results yesterday, make that last week!

     In his parable, Jesus talks about the process that a farmer goes through in order to have a harvest. Did I say that I don’t like where this parable is going?

     This process involves scattering seeds and then that dreaded word, “waiting.” You have to wait night and day until finally, the harvest time comes. 

     Jesus says essentially the same thing about how the mustard seed needs a lot of time until one day it becomes a large bush. In both cases, the result is good but it’s the waiting part that really stinks.

     And then Mark tells us that Jesus told even more parables as much as they were able to hear. I wonder if Jesus needed to do this because there were people like me in the crowd, people who were impatient, people who wanted to see results right away. 

     Jesus wants us to know that the Kingdom of God doesn’t work that way. It takes time, lots and lots of time before we are finally able to see the results.

     We Methodists are known for being active. We’re always running around doing something. Sometimes, the church can feel like grand central station with all kinds of ministries, all kinds of programs happening.

     Before the pandemic hit and our building was fully operational, we were a very busy church. 

     Sunday worship services, Sunday School, small groups, Monday Lunch, Athens First Saturday outreach, bible studies, weddings, funerals, baptisms, new member classes, Tuesday prayer team, School of Music concerts, AA groups, Growing Tree preschool, Kappa Phi and Boy Scout meetings, Korean congregation prayer gatherings, Leadership Board meetings, choir and bell choir rehearsals, and on and on and on.

     One look at our pre-pandemic church calendar shows that we were a very, very busy church and we have been for a very, very long time. But the pandemic changed us in a very significant way. With the need to close the building, we had to rethink how to be the church. Instead of being a busy church, we needed to learn what it means to be a more patient church.

     And so over these past several months, instead of focusing on results, we have focused more on what kingdom seeds God has been wanting us to plant. This has led us to plant new seeds leading to a high quality online worship option, online small groups and bible studies, mid-week Holy Hump day videos from your pastor, video check-ins with our Sunday School and pre-school children, delivery of Sunday School packets to our children, a more expanded social media presence, and Monday Lunch curbside meals.

     And this long time of sowing seeds with the church building closed gave our dedicated custodian the needed time to do some needed painting and strip and wax the floors which are very difficult to accomplish when you have several groups using the church building throughout the week. 

     We have been sowing lots and lots of Kingdom seeds over these past several months. And it’s going to be exciting to see what this new garden will look like. Some of the new growth will look very similar, but we will also notice new plants and new ways of going about ministry here at Athens First. 

     I think something very similar happened to our congregation back in 1955 after the fire that destroyed the previous church building. How is God calling you to be the church when you don’t have a church building? 

     So they had to regroup and pray about the new direction that God was calling them to go and who God was calling them to be. And all of that took a lot of patience as they waited three years until this new building was constructed.

     In order to be kingdom sowers, it takes a lot of patience, a lot of dreaming, and a lot of praying. But it is all worth it, especially when you start seeing those seeds taking root and blossoming.

     James A. Garfield, prior to serving as President, was the President of Hiram College here in Ohio. One day, a father asked Garfied if there was a short-cut to help his son get through college in less than the usual four years. 

     This man wanted his son to start making some money sooner rather than later. Garfield offered this wise reply, “Of course there is a way; it all depends on what you want your boy to do. When God wants to grow an oak tree, he takes 100 years. When he wants to make squash, he only takes two months.” Point taken!

     A six year old boy was assisting his mother with some spring gardening. The mother was absorbed in her work while the little boy tried to figure out how he could speed up the process of seeing a seed become a beautiful plant.

     All at once, the boy picked up a daffodil bud, and sat down on the ground, and studied it. Then with his two little hands, he tried to force it open into a full blossom. The result of course, was disappointment and a mess: limp petals and a dead flower.

     Frustrated, he cried out, “Mommy, why is it that when I try to open the buds, it just falls to pieces and dies. How does God open it into a beautiful flower?”

     Even before his mother could answer, a broad smile broke across the child’s face, and he exclaimed, “Oh! I know! God always works from the inside!”

     This little boy’s experience in the garden is like the parable of sowing seeds. God works from the inside. His kingdom is alive and it is growing.

     All of these past several months of wondering if the seeds we had planted would ever grow into something beautiful are beginning to sprout up all around us. And they will continue to sprout up because we continue to sow seeds for God’s kingdom. 

     Penny and I stopped by to see friends of ours who moved into a new home. After we got the tour and were about to leave, one of them said, “Oh, there’s one more thing we’d like to show you.” 

     She opened the door to this little closet near their front door. On the inside of that closet door, she showed us how a previous owner had the height of each of their children along with their age. It was fun to see how each child grew taller and taller as they got older and older in that house.

     At the time, it may seem like they will always be five or eight.  I remember when it seemed like forever before our kids would reach that next stage of development. At the time, it might seem like a slow process, but they are growing moment by moment and day by day into the incredible people that God has called them to be.

     Last summer, one of you asked me what I thought God was wanting to teach us during this global pandemic. What a great question! I want to thank whoever asked me that question.

     There’s probably a lot of things that God has been wanting to teach us during this challenging time. But I wonder if Jesus’ parable today helps us to answer that question. 

     Maybe we have learned to plant some new seeds that we wouldn’t have planted if we didn’t have this global pandemic. And maybe, we have learned to become more patient along the way, knowing that the seeds that we have been planting are already beginning to sprout and grow. 

     This past winter, I needed a new part for my treadmill and after several emails, the customer service support person finally sent me an email that he would be sending me the part. The email said, “I have arranged to send the part. Please do not worry and wait.”

     And so I decided to not worry and wait. Two weeks later, guess what? I started to worry and wait because there was still no part delivered. They totally forgot about my order. Why would they tell me to not worry and wait if they weren’t going to follow through on their end?

     Well, here’s the good news for those of us who are sowing seeds of the kingdom. We truly do not need to worry because the seeds of the kingdom that we have been sowing are already starting to become visible. 

     This God doesn’t forget our order. This God always delivers. 

Kingdom Sowers

Sermon Discussion Questions

Mark 4:26-34

June 13, 2021

In Jesus’ parable, he associates the growth of God’s kingdom with that of planting seeds. Sometimes, the most difficult part for us can be in remaining patient until we begin to see the results of our planting.

On a scale of 1 to 10 with ten being the most patient, how patient are you in waiting to see results? Why are some people more patient than others?

Methodists are known for being active in their faith. Check out any church calendar, and you will probably discover a very busy church. While it’s wonderful to have a busy church, sometimes we forget to take time to patiently wait for growth to happen. Pastor Robert mentioned that the long global pandemic has forced churches to slow down and be in a more waiting mode.

How has this slower time over the past several months due to the global pandemic helped you to be more patient and reflective of how God is at work in your life and in our church? 

During these past several months, our church has been planting a lot of seeds like adapting to a more remote approach to ministry through online bible studies, small groups, worship services, etc. Even though in-person ministries will always be the preferred way in living out our faith individually and as a church, just think of all the new and creative ways we have been discovering how to be God’s people over this past year.

Share how you have found new and creative ways to grow closer to God and live out your faith?

Parents with young children will sometimes mark the height of their children each year on a wall in their home to help show how they have grown over the past year. Unless we take time once in a while to see how much we have grown, it can be difficult to appreciate how we have been maturing.

Think of some ways that we can take time to see how much we have been growing and maturing in our faith. Do you think that it’s easier for others than it is for ourselves to see the growth that is happening in our lives? If so, why do you think that is true?

As we celebrate the seeds of our lives that are beginning to blossom and bear fruit, what is a faith seed that God is calling us to plant now?      

One last question: Is there someone you know who is struggling with patience and getting frustrated in not seeing any results? Lift them up in prayer and if possible and helpful, remind them of your support and encouragement.