Collecting Stages
As we test our lives against these five gauges, it’s helpful to cultivate and maintain four dispositions. What begin as stages accumulate to become regular attitudes. These trace the contours of Jesus’ Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13. Consider that everything said here about the individual might also be true of whole communities of faith.
I am a Seeker.
“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the Evil One comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the seed that was sown along the path.”
I’m reaching out to God, amazed to find that he’s already been pursuing me. As each message of God’s kingdom is revealed to me, I know I don’t understand fully. But I do work hard to understand with the help of the Holy Spirit, and other saints—both contemporary and ancient. With time set aside and effort made, I can resist the Enemy’s schemes to spoil truth.
I am a Starter.
“The seed that was sown on rocky ground is the person who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, yet he is not deeply rooted and does not endure. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away. ”
“There are no experts in the company of Jesus. We are all beginners.”
I’m a believer. Jesus is my first love. But my roots aren’t as deep as I’d like to think. When trouble comes, I still get rattled and take control. My confidence can wither in the heat of crisis. In those times I may need to draw on the faith of others around me. I must be patient, but not complacent—certainly not incurious or unteachable. Am I’m root bound? Let me find a bigger pot! I don’t want to fall away because of a lack of depth.
I am an Explorer.
“The seed that was sown among the thorns is the one who hears the word, but the worry of this world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it produces no fruit.”
Like any culture, God’s Kingdom is vast, deep, and layered. As a relative newcomer (remember, we’re all beginners), there’s so much to discover in the frontiers of his kingdom. I keep pressing in to learn—and to adapt. I’m growing up and branching out. And I resist the relentless tug of the ‘old kingdom’ that’s all around me. My tendency is to prefer comfort, and the world’s distractions pull hard, but I know these ‘weeds’ choke out life and freedom.
I am a Venturer.
“But the seed that was sown on the good ground is the one who continues to hear and understand the word. Indeed he continues to produce fruit: some a hundred, some sixty, and some thirty times more than was sown.”
God desires that I participate with him; that I be fruitful. This can be exhilarating. It can also be tiring and discouraging at times. I have to guard against running on ministry momentum—I have to maintain the postures of Seeker, Starter, and Explorer—so that I don’t drift into wrong motivations or burn out. Oh, and it really helps when other ministers encourage me along the way.
Understand. Internalize. Mature and resist threats. Bear fruit. These stages appear linear; they are linear in some regards. But we can continue to grow in our understanding even as our roots grow deeper. Our roots continue to grow as we branch out. And our branches continue to grow even as we begin to bear fruit. Further, there is always another message of the Kingdom waiting to sprout, once understood.
Photo | Jametlene Reskp/Unsplash