Earlier this summer we heard the parable of the sower and Jesus telling us that the seed that falls on good soil, multiplies 100, 60, 30 times from what was sown. As a gardener, I like to stop and think about the abundance of the act of planting a seed. An apple tree grows from a single seed and produces 10,000 to 30,000 apples over its lifetime. Each of those apples will contain an average of 5 seeds. That single tree has the potential of producing 50,000 more trees!
This past Sunday I worshiped with First Lutheran Church in Muskegon, where the congregation is holding a series of events as their long-time pastor, Bill Uetricht, prepares to retire. The celebration this weekend was focused on the ministry the congregation has in serving as an internship site. They have had eleven interns in the past two decades, though the tradition goes back further as Pastor Bill himself was an intern under Bishop Emeritus Gary Hansen when he was a pastor there!
The photo is of the interns who were able to be present this weekend and who helped to lead worship. It was evident to me that their year of internship was an important time in their pastoral formation and it was fun to watch people reminisce and reconnect with them. The interns present are serving in a variety of capacities mostly in congregations but also in the army and in the prison system. Most of them have served at least two congregations so far.
Think about the abundance that grows from the congregation’s commitment to provide an internship experience for a year. Each of these pastoral leaders have blessed many others as they moved on from their internship into congregations of their own — encouraging and equipping others to go out to live and share the good news that God’s love is stronger than anything else the world will throw at us.
What you do in the spirit of sharing the love of God shown to us in Jesus, God multiplies! Even the smallest kindness, a single word of mercy, a moment giving someone else your full attention, the act of planting a tomato, God multiplies.
Never grow weary in planting: in offering kindness, mercy, attention, and love. We don’t always get to see the fruits of our labor, but we have God’s promise that what we offer, God will nurture and multiply in ways we cannot imagine. Thanks be to God!
+Bishop Julie