A few weeks ago, I built for my wife a raised garden bed with the help of my grandson and his girlfriend. It’s made of cedar deck boards and holds about a yard of topsoil. My wife likes to grow some salad greens, green beans and couple of other things so that we can have fresh vegetables on our table. The raised bed makes it easier for her to tend that green feast.
I have been watering the garden each evening, and this morning I told her I could “row the crop”. That’s a farming expression I learned from her (me being a city kid from New York). It’s said when a farmer can see the first sprouting of the seeds he planted in the spring. These faint green ribbons assure him that the seed and soil are good, and that there will be a good harvest in the fall if the rains and sun do their work at the proper time.
In the parable of the sower (Matthew 13), Jesus describes what happens to the seeds when they fall to the ground. Those that land on hard, rocky or thin soil perish, but the seeds that fall on good soil grow and produce a bountiful crop. Jesus explains that the seed represents the word of God, the Gospel. That word will not grow in the unreceptive hearts of non-believers, but in the lives of those ready to hear it, the word will bear much fruit; a great crop of blessing.
We Christians are to sow the seeds wherever and whenever we can. We are not responsible for the soil upon which it falls. The good seed will grow in the hearts prepared by the Holy Spirit, and it will produce a life saving crop. We may never see the results of our sowing, it’s a crop we cannot “row”, but rest assured that the seed will flourish were it should, and the harvest will be amazing.
Meanwhile, I’ll be keeping an eye on that row of sprouts in the garden, eagerly anticipating a nice fresh salad one of these days.
Robert Frohlich 