Doug Harrell
Life Lessons
Sowing Seeds
By Doug Harrell
Mitchell County
When you hear the words “sowing seeds”, what comes into your mind? Do you see a farmer out in the field sowing seeds by hand, or with a crank seeder, a gardener in the garden, or does another picture pop into your mind’s eye? I have spent a lifetime sowing all kinds of seeds as a farmer, but today I want to talk about different kinds of seed that we sow, even if we never venture into a fertile field of dirt. Let me take a moment and look at different kinds of seeds that we sow in life. Let’s think about seeds that have a major impact upon the lives that we touch each day of our lives. Do we sow seeds of discord, do we sow seeds of distrust, do we sow seeds of sorrow? There are many kinds of hurtful and harmful seeds that we can sow daily. Most of the time our seeds are sown with our tongue rather than a seed sower. Are we concentrating of sowing positive seeds or negative seeds as we walk through each day. Jesus used a parable of the seed falling on the rocks, in the weeds and in fertile ground. Are we conscious of where we are sowing our seed, that is reflected in who we choose to run around with daily.
What does a seed really do? If you think about it, the seed is the beginning of all things. You need seed money to start a business, you need a seed to start a plant, you need a seed to start a life. Where do we get our seed? I plant bean seed that we call Daddy Dee beans, these are seeds that have been saved for generations, and I guard them closely to make sure that I save a supply each year. When you really stop and think about it, our daily lives are a result of the heritage seeds that we have planted in our minds throughout our lives. We are constantly planting in our own minds, and in fact, in our bodies. If we plant healthy seeds in our minds and bodies we usually grow healthy minds and bodies, if we sow junk and bad stuff in our minds and bodies we get back what we put in. Deuteronomy 22:9 “Thou shalt not sow the vineyard with divers seeds, lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled.”
I want to encourage each of us to be conscious of sowing seeds of love in our relationships, in our marriage, and in our families. We can be encouragers in life to those we come in contact with, if we will only try. When we speak to someone with sincere, encouraging words, we help give them strength to continue, in whatever situation they are facing.
The most important seed we can plant is the seed of salvation in the hearts of those around us. This can be done in many ways, you do not have to be a pastor, deacon or other person involved in active church work to sow the seeds of salvation. Our daily life is always the most powerful sermon that can be preached. We need to always be ready, willing and looking for the opportunity to share the word of God and we can only do that if we, you and I, take the time to learn and study God’s word daily. If our lives are a shining example, others will be asking for the fruit. Several places in the Bible it talks about the fact that you can tell a tree by its fruit. People will be attracted to you if you are genuine in your faith and have the love of Christ shining through your countenance. We need to plant the seeds that yield the harvest John talks about. John 4:35 “Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? Behold, I say unto you, lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” Our most important task here on earth is to continually be sowing the seeds of salvation to our families and our fellowmen throughout the earth, starting with our backyards.
