SUNFLOWERS

I’ve always been a big fan of sunflowers. In my first home I planted some sunflowers near my tomato plants. The sunflowers were gorgeous and provided just enough shade to the tomato plants that I had a tremendous yield of beautiful tomatoes.  One of my neighbors even commented she thought the tomatoes had a little sunflower seed taste in them.
Several years later I bought some sunflower seeds to plant in my backyard.  This time though the seeds never produced one single sunflower.  Was it the climate or soil that caused the issue?  No, the problem was very simple.  I never planted the seeds, and they remained in the packet.

This past week as I preached on the parable of the Sower, I emphasized that the seed represented the Word of God.  The Sower is called to spread the Word of God wherever they go.  It is our responsibility to be the witness of the Word and to spread the good news as much as possible. After that we leave the results to the Lord.  As I prepared for last week’s sermon, I went back to the kitchen drawer and pulled out the old packet of sunflower seeds. I didn’t throw them away because when I first found the forgotten seeds, I was reminded of this parable of Jesus.  It was a moment of conviction of the many times in my spiritual life that I had never spread the seed but left it in the packet.

I will be honest with you that I never lost sleep over those sunflower seeds I forgot about.  Those seeds were to me out of mind and out of sight. But there have been nights where I lay awake convicted that I missed the chance to plant a seed in someone’s life on that very day.  As I reminded our church on Sunday, our job is not to save them, but our job is to share with them how they can find salvation.  Jesus spoke truth that some seeds would produce 30-fold, 60-fold and even 100-fold in return. But a seed that is never cast will always produce nothing.
 
“How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher?”  Romans 10:14.