The Parable of the Seed

This morning J and I slept in a bit. He got to bed a little late last night and wasn't up at the usual time so I took advantage of some extra rest. After breakfast, he was playing with his bristle blocks which is rare. He was pretty creative telling me he was making a see saw as he stacked the blocks on top of one another, and then he was making a sandcastle. Both were ideas he came up with on his own out of the blue.

In my time alone this morning, I started Luke 8. Jesus was traveling from one town and village to another. His disciples were with him but also some women like Mary Magdelene and Susanna. Someone told him that his mother and brothers were waiting outside. (Verse 21) He replied, "My mother and brothers are those who hear God's word and put it into practice." Beth (in my book Jesus, the One and Only) shares that our kinship with Jesus is based directly on what we do with God's word. That hits pretty deep. Later in the passage, Jesus tells the parable of the sower. I love this illustration. Seeds that fell along the path are like those who hear God's word with joy but then it gets snatched away. Seed that falls on the rock is like those who hear the word but have no roots. They believe it for a while, but when tested the roots don't hold and they fall away. The seed that fell among the thorns is like those that hear but the word is choked out as they go and are distracted by worries, riches and pleasures of the world. Finally, seed on good soil is like one who hears the word and retains it; they hear God's word and they put it into action. This reminds me of the verse in James (1:22) - Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Those are powerful and hard hitting words. It's really good to think about. I know there are many times I can read God's word but then fail to do it. What a call to pay attention and put those things into practice.

We had quesedillas for lunch. Now this is something J really loves. I have no problem getting him to eat these. He ate a whole tortilla and asked for more so I gave him some of mine. He even ate some banana with peanut butter too. He was hungry. We visited L's friend Susan who just moved into a new house. J found a little ukulele he played with until he saw the back yard with several balls lying around. We spent the rest of our time in the yard and he went on a trampoline for the first time. It was so great watching him get used to trying to walk around. He held my hands and we jumped and he was laughing so hard. Then they threw some of the balls in to play with and J and I had a great time. On our way home, we had a coupon so we stopped for some ice cream. Yum! Yum!

We went to the late service tonight since we were asked to be available after the service for people who want prayer. We started a sermon series on forgiveness. Tonight's message looked at our human way of getting even. Like when someone hurts us, we are triggered and want to hurt them back. He speaks about David (which took me back to my old study!) where David is ready to strike back at the wealthy but mean and stingy Nabal who slighted David after he and his men protected Nabal's men and sheep. It was Abigail (Nabal's wife) and her words of wisdom to David that softened his heart and he did not strike at Nabal and his men. His soft heart is key here. I know I have to ask the Lord to give me a soft heart towards others, especially those who hurt me, so I don't end up falling into the trap of returning evil for evil. It is so tempting to do that sometimes.

I let J stay up a bit later tonight to see his uncle from Chicago who stopped in. He has a business trip in the Madison area. I'm getting a purple turtle sandbox from one of my sisters and he brought it here for us. That's J's birthday present. He is turning 2 on Saturday! I have a lot of preparation yet to do for that day so it will be a large part of the upcoming week.