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This homily was posted on [orthodox-sermons] it is a group on yahoo, and not a very active one at that, I somehow got on a few years back. Sermon: �Time Again for That Winter Lawn� draws some interesting analogies and good instructions. Thought y'all might enjoy it too. It is by John A. Nixon, MDiv, EdD Assumption Greek Orthodox Church, Scottsdale, AZ 10/17/04

4th Sunday of Luke
Prophet Hosea
Fathers of the 7th Ecumenical Council
Luke 8:5-14
Titus 3:8-15

�Time Again for That Winter Lawn�

It�s that time of year again: winter lawn planting. Only in Phoenix: stop watering, perennial lawn dries up. Mow it down. Spread manure if you must. Spread the seed of the winter rye. Then water day and night, and in less than two weeks, presto! Lush greens worthy of a fairway at your favorite golf course. This annual ritual is the closest many of us will get to farming.

Today�s Gospel reading was a familiar one. It�s a farming parable. Jesus tells the story of a farmer who was out sowing seeds, which fell in
different places as he scattered the seed across his field. He later explained the parable to His disciples. �Some seed fell on a footpath, where it was stepped on, and the birds came and ate it.� These are people who hear the word of God (the seed), but the devil comes along and takes it from their hearts. �Other seed fell on shallow soil with underlying rock. This seed began to grow, but soon it withered and died for lack of moisture.� These are people who have received the word with
joy, but having no roots, lose what they received when temptation comes along. �Other seed fell among thorns that shot up and choked out the
tender blades.� Here, worldly cares, wealth, and pleasures suffocate the word which had begun to take root. �Still other seed fell on fertile
soil. This seed grew and produced a crop one hundred times as much as had been planted.�

�A Monk of the Eastern Church� writes that it is not enough for the word to fall on good ground. Just as the gardener takes several steps in
planting, so patience and silence before God is necessary. The seed must be protected�the soil must be prepared. The planted seed needs regular
water; so also does our life need regular prayer and other sources of God�s grace, without depending on moments of emotion or �inspiration.�
We must not allow distractions and entertainment�not necessarily harmful in themselves�to hinder an intimate relationship between us and God.

There are four things we can do to put the soil of our hearts in order for the nurture of God�s word�you�ve heard this before�they all
conveniently begin with the letter �P.� The first is �plow.� The soil of the heart must be softened; the hard surface loosened. Repentance is the
key here. It�s not enough to be sorry for sins, but to confess that sin, seeking God�s forgiveness and grace, and allowing Him to soften the hard
heart. Second, is �prepare.� The soil needs to be fertilized. Regular prayer, receiving the Sacraments, and reading the Bible fertilize the
spiritual heart. Third, is �plant.� We need to sow God�s word into all the situations of our lives�we don�t want our spiritual winter lawn to
be splotchy. Said another way, we are not really Christians if we�re just �Sunday Christians.� Fourth, is �protect.� We need to weed the
garden of our hearts. Don�t let the distractions of daily life choke out the word of God in us. Don�t get caught up in pointless and divisive
arguments, as St. Paul wrote to Titus in today�s Epistle reading.

Well cared for, the seeds sown will yield an abundant harvest. This is our goal. Growing spiritually takes patience and discipline, which may come naturally for some of us. Most of us, however, need God�s grace to give us the patience and discipline that is not in our nature. We have
the saints as our examples that we can draw closer to the Lord and live with a singular desire to do His will. Today is also the feast of Hosea the Prophet. In his book we read of God�s love for Israel in spite of the Israelites� idolatry and wickedness. Hosea also speaks of their captivity and restoration. The endless cycle of ancient Israel�s falling away, punishment, and restoration is one that is repeated in the lives of many people who strive to follow the Lord. We take the reminder of God�s love, which the Prophet Hosea weaves throughout his book, and do our part: see that the seed of faith is firmly planted and well-
nourished.

In the life of the Church we also celebrate today the Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council, who refuted the iconoclast heresy. You recall the procession of icons on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, the first Sunday of Lent: guided by the Holy Spirit, the Church triumphed over heresy. The issue of iconoclasm�saying that icons were idolatry�had an underlying agenda of denying the reality of the incarnation of the eternal Son of God. When Diane Sawyer of ABC News interviewed Mel
Gibson, and when he described his faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, born of a Virgin, dying a brutal death, and rising from the dead, a
quizzical Sawyer, asked, �You really believe that?� �Yes I do,� Gibson replied. Iconoclasm still lives today. The secular world does not
believe what Christians do.

May we seek from God His grace, taking the Prophet Hosea and the Fathers of the Church as our examples, so that we may plow, prepare, plant, and
protect the seed of God�s word sown in us, that the Lord�s harvest may be abundant in us. Amen.


John A. Nixon, MDiv, EdD Assumption Greek Orthodox Church,
Scottsdale, AZ
10/17/04

Pani Rose, Thanks for posting this. It comes as a breath of fresh air. I am busy getting ready to move,(only eight more days) but try to read threads when I get a moment. This explains this Sunday's Gospel so well and gives much food for thought and prayer.

Bless you for your faithfulness to share these good things with the forum. I am hoping to read more (and post a little) using library computers when we are wintering SW. I am always happy to read yours.
Your sister in Christ,
Mary Jo

Mary Jo,

You are always so kind. You will be missed.

But the exciting part is when you post you will have such awesome adventures to tell us about! We will look forward to hearing from you.

GO WITH GOD!
Pani Rose