New Ground
The ole farmer knew he had 20 acres on the North side of the mountain. As things would have it he had not needed the use of the land for 20 years. But things were changing. He cleared the land of growing trees, shrub brush, and undergrowth.
It was time to plow. He remembered having plowed those 20 acres when he was a young man. It was such a pleasure to follow the mule pulling the single-point plow through the soft, loamy, and rich soil.
Progress had enabled the farmer to purchase a nice tractor. He lowered the three-point plow into the soil and set out across the field. Oh how beautiful it was to see that rich soil being broken up. "It will be a fine crop this year," he mused, and settled comfortably into the soft seat. The tractor engine sounded smooth and easy.
Suddenly the tractor jolted to a stop as if it hit a wall. The startled farmer was thrust against the steering wheel as the motor stalled.
Deeply puzzled the farmer stepped off the tractor and began to investigate. The tires were fine. Nothing in front of the tires. But the plow was at an odd angle. The farmer backed the tractor away, took a shovel and dug into the soil. To his amazement he found that he had hit a large rock.
He shook his head. How many times had he plowed this field? How many times had he walked every inch of this dirt? How many times had the old mule walked back and forth, and they had never hit a rock?
But while the farmer shook his head, he was also thinking. He knew that freezing and thawing of the soil, rains and movement of the earth can cause rocks to work toward the surface. Odd it is, but every farmer knows that you can pick up all the rocks in the field but with a little time and the work of nature there will be more rocks.
My Friend, if you are going to plow an old field over and over and over you may get all the rocks out. But what you must know is that if you plow and plant the same field over and over you wear the soil out. You deplete the soil of nutrients.
If you want to increase the harvest, you will have to plow new ground or plow ground that has rested for a long while. If it is new territory or if you are working in an area that has rested for a good while, expect to hit some rocks.
The parable lesson here is that churches that keep on doing the same thing over and over get diminishing returns. They plow and sow in the same field over and over until the harvest becomes less and less. They have no challenges because they are not willing to challenge the future. There are no new adventures. There is no desire to increase the harvest. The objective is to keep things running smoothly.
I knew a church consultant. He received a call to help a congregation in New England. He asked why they would pay him to come from California to New England. "Well," they replied, "our congregation has dwindled to three families, but we have $3,000,000 in the bank. We are going to close our church, but we cannot agree on where the money should go." They plowed that field right into poverty.
Why this writing? The answer is because we are plowing in new fields. Covenant Church has never been here before. We do not have books to read about how to do what we are doing. God is doing a new thing among us.
We occasionally feel the jolt of hitting a rock. Humanly we think of how easy it was to plow in the soft dirt where we all felt so comfortable, warm and cozy. God came along and opened doors of opportunity to us. Being a people with big hearts and loving God we stepped through the door.
Here we are. In a few days 20,000+ students will arrive at the University of Virginia. About 40% of the students will come from 128 countries. Even now the federal government is sending 150 military families to Charlottesville for 9 months of special training. Several hundred Iraqis are coming to Charlottesville as a consequence of the war.
Always in our heart are those folks who have lived in Charlottesville and called it home all their lives. Other families move here for employment, to be near families, to be near medical facilities, and to retire from other cities.
Here is my comfort. Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit to comfort, counsel, and empower us. Jesus told us that some things only happen with prayer and with fasting. Some rocks in the field can be picked up. Some can be dug up. Some will be too big to move. We will stake out the rocks too big to move and plow around them. We will see a harvest grow up until those stubborn rocks are hidden by victory.
We will put our shoulders to the wheel. We are a determined, prayerful, grateful people with our hearts set on ministry.
Much love
Pastor Bare
He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him [Psalm 126:5-6].