“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace…”

That’s how that famous prayer of Saint Francis begins. An instrument can take many forms: as exquisite as a grand piano or as simple as a penny whistle. It can be a Stratovarius violin or a kazoo from a toy store. Whatever the instrument, in the hands of a master, it can make beautiful music. One could say that the whole of Creation is such an instrument, as are we creatures.

When Jesus disciples begged him to increase their faith (Luke 17:5-6), he told them all they needed was a tiny mustard seed! And with it they would have all the faith needed to work wonders! In the hands of a master gardener, they reaped a bumper crop of faith! Just think how audacious it must have sounded to those disciples, that their tiny, insignificant offering would lead to an abundant harvest! See how it relates to the prayer attributed to St. Francis (whose feast day happens to be this weekend): “Where there is injury, let me sow pardon…”

What better way to recognize the eco-faith vibes in today’s gospel than to dwell on Jesus’ metaphor of faith as a seed, the power of a seed that is sown in the crust of the earth? Imagine how what you sow might germinate into something beyond your wildest dreams! How will you sow goodness and peace this week?

Did you catch that little word, ‘sow’ and how easily it can be misinterpreted by the hearer as “s-o” as in “SO WHAT?” “So, let me love. So, help me pardon.”  If we forget that it’s spelled “s-o-w” – as in sowing, planting and digging our fingers into the clay of the earth – we miss the gloriously organic gift this week’s text lends us. Planting hope where there is despair, sowing light into the darkness, and cultivating joy from deep in the hard-packed ground of sadness: THAT’S the dirty, messy, gardening piece of being instruments of peace! And, as with any planting, there is no quick fix. Being instruments of peace requires patience, watering, a little fine-tuning, and a healthy dose of practice so that the seeds we sow might, indeed, sprout and grow.

When was the last time you played an instrument?  Or sang a song with a group? It takes time and practice to make music. Even the choir, before they’re ready to perform their piece, must trip over themselves, learn their parts, and condition their voices to blend into a symphony of ONE. Getting back to Francis’ prayer:

You want your LOVE to break through the hard-packed earth of HATRED?

You want your PARDON to break through the hard-packed earth of INJURY?

You want your FAITH to break through the hard-packed earth of DOUBT?

You want your HOPE to break through the hard-packed earth of DESPAIR?

You want your LIGHT to break through the hard-packed earth of DARKNESS?

You want your JOY to break through the hard-packed earth of SADNESS?

Then learn to “get-out-of-the-way-of-Jesus” and learn from the Maestro – the Master Gardener – to put the needs of others first: “Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console – to be understood as to understand – to be loved as to love.”

Beloved of God: let’s not shy away from getting our hands dirty this week and trusting that what little we have to offer is enough in the ecology of God’s economy.  Just as there is no “So what” in the Creation, only the Creator’s creative sowing of the seeds of life, there is no “So what” in actions that sow care and healing for neighbors and Creation, only the power of God. 

In an earth hardened by the massive injuries of the exploitation of people and nature for the sake of greed, bend your ear to this sowing, and you will hear a symphony.

Let us pray: Reap a harvest from the hard-packed earth in which we live, O God, with whatever seed we have to offer, and bring new life to our world in Jesus’ name. Amen.