Growing, Not Just Repeating

Submitted by bob on

Growing, Not Just Repeating

This year, I want to grow—not by repeating what I have already learned, but by learning a new way to communicate the same good news. I want to become more fluent in the parables of Jesus—stories that enter quietly, stay with people, and keep unfolding long after the conversation ends.

Last Sunday our church looked at the parable of the Growing Seed (Mark 4:26–29).

That parable has been ticking through my mind all week. It quietly removes the illusion that we control outcomes. Growth happens. Our role is presence, faithfulness, and patience.

Back in November, I challenged you to equip one person to begin sharing the gospel during the Christmas season. Were you successful? Maybe yes. Maybe no. But either way, the parable reminds us of something freeing—we can take the initiative, but the result is always up to God.

Jesus often taught this way. He told stories drawn from everyday life—farming, money, neighbours, work. The parables do not push for instant decisions. They invite reflection. They lodge in the mind and keep working.

Why these work so well with non-Christians:

  • They start with ordinary experience—familiar, not religious
  • They do not demand immediate agreement
  • They invite reflection rather than argument
  • They keep working after the conversation ends
  • They allow people to discover truth rather than be told conclusions

My personal goal this year is simple: to learn to tell one parable well each month—naturally, conversationally, and without forcing an outcome.

Here are the parables I am considering:

  • The Sower — Matthew 13:3–9, 18–23
  • The Growing Seed — Mark 4:26–29
  • The Mustard Seed — Mark 4:30–32
  • The Leaven (Yeast) — Matthew 13:33
  • The Hidden Treasure — Matthew 13:44
  • The Pearl of Great Price — Matthew 13:45–46
  • The Good Samaritan — Luke 10:30–37
  • The Lost Sheep — Luke 15:3–7
  • The Lost Coin — Luke 15:8–10
  • The Two Builders — Matthew 7:24–27

So let me leave you with a question worth sitting with:

What will you focus on this year to sharpen how you communicate the gospel—not just adding years of experience, but deepening skill?

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