Reflection by Deacon Russ for 5th Sunday of Lent

“Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” The image of the grain of wheat, its death, and its fruitfulness is often paralleled with bodily death and resurrection, especially considering the passage that immediately follows it: “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life.” Jesus was certainly talking about himself and his own approaching dying and rising. We’ve heard these words many times – but what do they mean for us?

The choice to deny oneself in this life is a death of sorts and the fruit this can produce to feed others is a beautiful thing to behold. But how often do we think in those terms? How often do we ask ourselves: How do I feed others with the fruit that I produce through my choices to deny myself and love others? How do my sacrifices produce lasting fruit in the world? Do I understand that a grain of wheat dies and grows not so it can go through a miserable, painful change; but rather so that it produces new food – food to be enjoyed, shared, and given to nourish others.

But how does all this relate to us? I think we have all felt this trade off in our lives. It is no mystery. We have all traded off immediate, but fleeting, rewards for lasting and long term fruitfulness. Those of us who are parents do without at times so that our children may have a better life, with more opportunities. Some of us can remember how our own parents spent their life working on an assembly line, in a tire factory, in a nursing home or hospital, all to make sure that we had greater advantages in life. And we do the same for our children, be they young or older. The grain of wheat dies.

Some of you have denied yourself and done the will of God by caring for an elderly parent who in their old age needs the constant care you once needed as a baby. The grain of wheat dies. Some of you have endured the hardships of supporting that family member or friend in his or her struggle with an addiction. You have put up with a cycle of victory and defeats, ups and downs, because of the command of Jesus to love. The grain of wheat dies. Some of you have eaten less or more simply during Lent and are giving the money you saved to Operation Rice Bowl or a local food pantry. The grain of wheat dies.

Those of you who are teenagers or young adults may have postponed a chance to join friends for good times because another friend was in need of you because they just broke up with a boyfriend or girlfriend and were depressed. The grain of wheat dies.

Some of you have lost a child or a spouse, and not a day goes by that you do not think of that person when you feel that everything in life has been taken from you. Some of you have carried a hurt so deep and so stinging for years, and you have never spoken about it to another soul, and there have been times that you have wanted to act out in anger or revenge or rage, but you have resisted and turned the other cheek and responded with love. The grain of wheat dies.

We feed each other often with our giving, with our goodness. Jesus tells us today that following him means serving others. Our readings remind us that our covenant – our love relationship – with God is written on our hearts and not just on a legal pad. We care because we love – we love God, and we love others. “Unless the grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” In these closing weeks of Lent, let us challenge ourselves to continue this process in our lives to nourish one another, to bring hope and peace and comfort to those we love, to be willing to be the grain of wheat that dies.

If you have a brief faith reflection on today’s reading that you would like to share, please send it to me at deaconruss@holyspiritunoh.org.