Daily Devotional: Monday, May 11, 2026

This devotional follows the PC(USA) Daily Lectionary for the Monday following the Sixth Sunday of Easter.

Daily Lectionary Readings

Morning Psalms: Psalm 97; Psalm 145
First Reading: Leviticus 25:35-55
Second Reading: Colossians 1:9-14
Gospel Reading: Matthew 13:1-16
Evening Psalms: Psalm 124; Psalm 115

Visio Divina: The Sower

Art Focus: The Sower by Vincent van Gogh (1888)

Vincent van Gogh returned to the motif of the sower throughout his life, finding deep spiritual resonance in the act of planting. In this 1888 work, the sower is cast in shadow against a massive, radiant sun. The image captures the faithful, repetitive rhythm of labor. The sower does not control the weather, the setting sun, or the hidden processes of the earth; the task is simply to walk the field and cast the seed.

Reflection: The Rhythm of the Sower

In the modern world, it is easy to feel as though we are casting seeds onto solid pavement. Between the weight of 24-hour news and the friction of daily life, the soil of our environment often feels unforgiving.

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus describes a sower whose seeds fall on a lot of different ground: the path, rocky soil, thorns, and finally, good soil. Much of everyday life feels like a struggle with rocks and thorns. Whether it is a parent attempting to maintain peace at home, an advocate navigating a rigid bureaucracy, or a neighbor trying to offer empathy in a defensive culture, the results of our efforts often seem to wither or get choked out by the noise of modern life.

However, the Epistle to the Colossians offers a different perspective on strength. Paul prays that the community be “made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power.” Notably, this power is not described as a force for dominating circumstances or instantly fixing problems. Instead, Paul explains that this strength is “prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks.”

Divine strength is rarely the force of a bulldozer clearing a field; it is the quiet endurance of the sower. It is the persistence to keep showing up and tossing seeds of grace, truth, and love, even when the ground looks impenetrable.

We are not responsible for the timing or the scale of the harvest. We are asked only to be faithful in the sowing. While some seeds may be lost, others will find a crack in the earth, take root, and yield a beauty that cannot be engineered through human effort alone.

Daily Prayer

God of the harvest and God of the rocky soil,
Thank you for the sun that rises and sets without our striving. When the systems of this world feel broken and when the people we care about are difficult to reach, grant us the strength that comes from Your glorious power.

Keep us from the despair of thinking our efforts do not matter. Give us the endurance to wait, the patience to keep planting, and the grace to joyfully give thanks for the small green shoots we see along the way.
Amen.