Seeds Like Us

Photo courtesy of www.amjorsfeldt.dkThe following exercise is from a synchroblog at Frank Viola's "Beyond Evangelical."    You can read more about it here:   http://frankviola.org/2012/07/09/gospelforthemiddle      
      Fielding Melish and his wife Felicia have two children, ages 10 and 6. They live in a very remote part of Maine, USA. They are surrounded by extended family, none of whom are Christians. The nearest churches are one hour away, and by all evangelical standards, none of them are good. These churches are either highly legalistic, highly libertine, or just flat-out flaky.

        One of Fielding’s cousins is a practicing Christian. They see each other once a year. Fielding’s cousin has shared Christ with Fielding many times over the years. Whenever they’ve talked about spiritual things, Fielding shows interest.      Felicia grew up in a Christian home. She’s received Christ, but she isn’t evangelistic and is overwhelmed with working long hours and raising two small children. She would love to find a church nearby for the spiritual support and instruction, but none exist.Fielding has no college education. While he is capable of reading, he is not a reader. He doesn’t use the Web either. He’s a man who works with his hands, both for his career and for recreation. He’s an “outdoorsman.” He hunts, he builds, he does manual labor, etc. In his spare time, he helps his elderly parents with various building projects.      Fielding is not an atheist. Neither is he an agnostic. He believes in God. He believes Jesus is the Savior of the world who died for our sins and rose again from the dead. He hasn’t fully surrendered his life to Christ, but he is not sure what that looks like exactly. His children know a little about the Lord, mostly because of what their mother has taught them.Recently Fielding asked this question:When I’m with my cousin once a year, I want to learn more about God. But when I come back home, and I’m around everyone else, my mind is off of God, and I am back to working, raising my kids, and helping my parents. Someone needs to come up with a solution for people like me . . . people who are in the middle. (By “in the middle,” Fielding means someone who believes in Jesus, but who isn’t fully absorbed in the faith yet either. They simply don’t know enough nor do they have any spiritual support system around them.)Relocating is not an option for Fielding and his wife. Even if they wanted to relocate, they don’t see a way they could do it financially.Remember: Fielding and his wife don’t personally know any Christians. None of their extended family or coworkers are believers either. And the nearest churches (which are an hour away) aren’t recommended.
Question: If you were Fielding’s cousin, how would you instruct him and his wife the next time you saw them?
My suggestion is below. Please feel free to post your own in the comments section. I'm curious how each of us will answer this challenge.
      There's a terrific story in the Bible, told by Jesus, about a man who works with his hands.           A farmer, planting seeds.        The story describes four possible fates for that one powerful seed.      Although Fielding doesn't like to read, everyone enjoys a good story. Especially when the characters are people like us.     The parable of the sower (Luke 8:5-10) would fit on an index card. Fielding can write the story on the card, then tape it to his bathroom mirror. Each day, he would commit to reading that story at least once, for one year, until he sees his cousin again.     That's a commitment of one or two minutes per day.      But Fielding would be hearing daily what Jesus said concerning faith -- Fielding's faith, in particular.     The parable itself turns into a seed.     The seed that yields hunger for more.