Article October 18, 1941 Issue

Waiting for the Harvest

ISRAEL PICKENS

In the thirteenth chapter of Matthew's Gospel there is recorded the parable of the sower, a story containing many significant and important points of instruction as given by Christ Jesus to a great throng that had gathered by the seaside to hear him. The Master began his discourse by presenting a picture that was no doubt familiar to all of them. "Behold, a sower went forth to sow," said he; and he then related how some of the seeds fell by the wayside, and some upon stony places, others among thorns, and some into good ground. When his disciples came and questioned him, he explained to them the rich spiritual meaning of this simple story.

This parable is especially beautiful to the student of Christian Science, for he learns to apply the teachings of the Master to his own experiences, as the higher meaning of these teachings dawns upon his thought through the interpretation of the Scriptures that is given today in Mary Baker Eddy's writings. The student learns that each one must become a sower of seed, the seed of Truth. This seed must be sown in the right soil, that there may be a full harvest; and errors in this process of sowing must be avoided, such as wasting the seed on stony ground, on hard, unyielding soil, or scattering it among thorns, which soon choke the seed. Beliefs of error must yield to alertness and watchfulness that nothing prevent our true sowing. Mrs. Eddy writes in the Message to The Mother Church for 1901 (p. 33), "To plant for eternity, the 'accuser' or 'calumniator' must not be admitted to the vineyard of our Lord, and the hand of love must sow the seed."

There is much to be done after the sowing, in the mid-season before the golden grain appears in its ripened state. There must be careful planning and preparation that proper shelter and utilization of the crop may be provided. This is one of the useful points in the lesson—the importance of the season of patient yet active waiting, of waiting expectantly, lovingly, for the fruitage, the result of our righteous endeavors.

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