Grow Well – Br. Curtis Almquist
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Matthew 7:15-20
In the scriptures, illustrations that come from the land – metaphors about farm and field, about gardens and vineyards, trees and orchards, flowers and fruit – recur repeatedly. People who live close to the land will immediately understand the analogies about how things grow: about seeds, and soil, and sowing; about cultivating, watering, weeding, pruning, and harvesting. Jesus was well versed in these things, clearly, and he has a lot to say. In this gospel lesson, we hear Jesus asking rhetorical questions: “Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?” No. Clearly not. Grapes are not gathered from thorns, nor figs from thistles. What’s the point?
Jesus’ point is about outcomes. If your end goal, your heart’s desire, is to harvest succulent grapes and figs, how will this happen? Only with intention.
You might find it helpful to apply this metaphor to the cultivation of your own soul. What is it that you long to be or become, and is there something in the way? For example, Saint Paul names what he calls “the fruit of the Spirit”: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.[i]That’s Saint Paul’s list. What’s your list? It could be quite a short list: the “fruit of the Spirit” you desire to mature in your own soul. If, for example, you desire to become more peaceful, that’s very revealing.
Two things. For one, there must be something that is compromising peace in your soul, and you know it. What’s the issue? Why are you unpeaceful? Is it the soil condition of your soul? Are there weeds? Are you dried up and withered? Is the garden of your soul undernourished or malnourished? Is there inadequate light? What is compromising God’s gift of peace in your soul? We could call that the bad news.
The good news is your awareness of need is already coming out of God’s provision. If you desire peace, that desire is coming out of a seed of peace already sown into your soul, a seed that wants and needs to be cultivated. Do you desire to be more generous, more kind, more patient, more forgiving? You already have the gift, God’s gift. It is already sown into your soul. The desire is the sign of the seed. The seed wants and needs to be cultivated.
How do you want to end up? At the end of today? At the end of your life? This requires intention. We have in God both partnership and provision for the cultivation of our soul. God’s invitation is to collaborate – to co-labor – with God in the cultivation of our soul: in our growing whole, free, and real.
[i]Galatians 5:22-23.
Thank you Br Curtis. Your words really ” rock” me this morning and sent me immediately for paper and pencil to list what I consider my own conceived fruits of the Spirit. They came quickly! What doesn’t seem to come quickly is the discernment of the fruits as they appear.
And looking back they have appeared.
God is thanked for this.
Loved the message but as it applies, I’m lost…
A beautiful expression of God’s collaboration with us to reach our fullest potential, our deepest heart’s desire to be who God created us to be! Thank you, Brother Curtis, for sharing the Spirit’s wisdom with us today. As an avid gardener, I find joy in working in the soil and cultivating as much of God’s beauty through diverse plantings as I can. So your words about the seed already being planted in my soul touches me deeply and inspires my intention to be all that God has planned for me.
If you desire peace, that desire is coming out of a seed of peace already sown into your soul, a seed that wants and needs to be cultivated. Do you desire to be more generous, more kind, more patient, more forgiving? You already have the gift, God’s gift. It is already sown into your soul. The desire is the sign of the seed. The seed wants and needs to be cultivated.
I really needed to hear this today. God bless you!
“If you desire peace, that desire is coming out of a seed of peace already sown into your soul, a seed that wants and needs to be cultivated.” And yes, I desire to be more generous, and more kind. Since COVID-19 quarantine started I have struggled to find ways to reach out to others with generosity and intentional kindness. God (and the wisdom of SSJE) cultivates me amidst weeds and vines that would choke the love of God growing in me. Unable to gain support from fellowship with my church, reaching out to others as I would want someone to reach out to me, is all I can do. And there is always so much more that I want to do, but by day’s end, I grow weary and become easily distracted by my own pain and unworthy pursuits (the internet). But now it’s a new day, and I thank you Br Curtis for the reminder that God has done the planting in me, and intentional cultivation is part of the process of overcoming and becoming like Jesus. Amen
Brother Curtis, what an encouraging word you shared – so helpful too.
Thank you!
Thank you, Brother. It is so important to emphasise intention …..something we must do…..rather than a desire…..which can float in the air…..for a long time.
I appreciate everyone’s Reflections but the length of this one today is good .led me to prayer.