The Sower’s Harvest

Paula Adamson

Description

This book puts a modern twist on “The Parable of the Sower and the Seed”. It will intrigue and inspire the reader with its intense conflict, literary narrative, and engaging dialogue.
This book is a contemporary version of “The Parable of the Sower and the Seed”. Though four sisters grew up in a God-fearing household, their lives depict what type of soil they fell on. Brenna, the oldest sister, falls on the hard path and blatantly denounces Jesus. Sophia, the second oldest, gets emotionally caught up in the wiles of a false prophet. Onia, the youngest, worries too much about the hardships her family faces.
Zoey is the sister who fell on the good soil. Her faith takes root and shows itself. However, her zeal for the Lord creates rifts in her relationships. She is assaulted and ridiculed by the impact depravity has on the people around her including her own sisters. Now her colleague and spiritual confidant, Theresa (Resa) Williams, is retiring, leaving her feeling abandoned and questioning whether she should continue to teach the hostile and rude students who treat her with contempt. She questions whether her spiritual influence is making a difference in anyone’s life.
Zoey’s sense of urgency in sharing the gospel proves to be valuable because the Sower is coming to reap His harvest. Who will be ready?

Sujets

• Literary
• Literature
• Contemporary history
• Contemporary
• Christian
• Drama
• Fiction

Informations

• Publié par: LifeRich Publishing
• Date de parution: 14 mars 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781489743763
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

THE SOWER’S HARVEST
Paula Adamson


Copyright © 2023 Paula Adamson.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
 
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
 
LifeRich Publishing is a registered trademark of The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc.
 
 
LifeRich Publishing
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.liferichpublishing.com
844-686-9607
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
 
Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, King James Version (Authorized Version). First published in 1611. Quoted from the KJV Classic Reference Bible, Copyright © 1983 by The Zondervan Corporation.
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
ISBN: 978-1-4897-4375-6 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-4897-4374-9 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-4897-4376-3 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2022916175
 
 
LifeRich Publishing rev. date: 03/13/2023
Contents
Prologue
 
Chapter 1 Brood of Beelzebub
Chapter 2 Sibling Relationships
Chapter 3 College Sweethearts
Chapter 4 Benighted Souls
Chapter 5 Better Days
Chapter 6 Blind Date and Narrow Gate
Chapter 7 The Wide Road to Destruction
Chapter 8 Preacher or False Prophet
Chapter 9 A Labor of Love
Chapter 10 Familial Woes
Chapter 11 The One that Got Away
Chapter 12 What’s for Christmas?
Chapter 13 A Fairweather Holiday
Chapter 14 The Invitation
Chapter 15 Love Personified
Chapter 16 The Family Gathering
Chapter 17 THE SINISTER MINISTER
Chapter 18 Renegade Rachel
Chapter 19 Teenage Terrorism
Chapter 20 Caught in the Act
Chapter 21 Trouble in “Paradise”
Chapter 22 Hard Pressed, But Not Crushed
Chapter 23 Struck Down, But Not Destroyed
Chapter 24 Powerful Petitions
Chapter 25 Answered Prayers
Chapter 26 Spiritual Gatekeeper
Chapter 27 The Harvest
Chapter 28 Indignation
Chapter 29 The Family Reunion

This book is dedicated to the memory of Barnetta Boyd – thank you, Mom, for bringing me up as a child of God.
Prologue
“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby:”
1 Peter 2:2
Zoe Todvue had a special hunger, but not the way most people would think. She felt the need to have her appetite satisfied even if she had to miss out on daily entertainment to remain nourished. She went through extremes almost every day to satisfy this yearning.
Her desire left her feeling shunned by the world. People called her narrow-minded and sanctimonious. Her craving encouraged potential dates into calling her snobbish. Former friends told her she created a prison for herself that no one could endure, including herself. Her ignorance of the latest TV shows, music, and fashions rendered her speechless during most gatherings, making her an object of ridicule and judgment.
Her parents had instilled this hunger into her spirit at an early age. Though she and her family attended church regularly and had family devotions, none of her sisters exemplified their importance as she did.
During her freshman year in college tragedy struck. A drunk driver took both of her parents’ lives when he misjudged a curve on a two-lane highway. He turned too wide, and his pickup hit their car head-on.
Zoe reached out to her grandparents to make sure they took care of her and her younger sister. However, she realized they didn’t exemplify the same zeal and hunger that her parents instilled in her causing her to feel out of place and alone.
Her two older sisters ostracized her and excluded her like an outcast. Her oldest sister, Brenna, hadn’t spoken to her in years and treated her with contempt. Her sister Sophia had a shallow outlook on life and was in love with getting rich which made having a relationship with her challenging. She had a closer relationship with Onia than the other two. However, her younger sister had a tendency to get rapt by the cares and worries of the world. Not only did any of her sisters have the special yearning she had, they didn’t want it.
Zoe was a misfit trying to relate in a world plagued with depravity.
Chapter 1

Brood of Beelzebub
“And when he sowed, some seeds fell by the way side, and the fowls came and devoured them.”
Matthew 13:4
Sirens clamored as emergency vehicles rushed to the apocalypse. A blaze had consumed a brand new furniture store near Atlanta. Bodies lay on the ground like lifeless mannequins, some suffering from smoke inhalation. Paramedics wondered whether life remained as many lay on the ground, blood-stained and unconscious.
The contents inside the building crackled like crumpling paper as embers sparked from windows like fireworks. The building creaked and moaned as flames spewed from it like a fire-breathing dragon. The windows, two in the middle especially, had a demonic glow about them as if they were eyeing their next morsel. Firefighters labored to squelch the conflagration to no avail.
Cars careened out of control. People heard tires screeching and metal crunching as vehicles collided. The maniacs behind the wheels gawked at the scene, causing them to hit poles, each other, and pedestrians. Tires hissed as life drained from them due to the impact.
Paparazzi-like bystanders scrambled to the commotion and dripped with sweat as they gazed in the sweltering August heat. They raised their cell phones in anticipation of posting the chaos on social media. Others waved at TV cameras in attempts to grasp their five minutes of fame.
News reporters from three major networks swarmed the area like bees and jockeyed for position, eager to be the first to share their version of the catastrophe.
Brenna Staithe sprang up from her pillow as the mayhem jolted her from her stupor in her Druid Hills home. Her head throbbed like a pulsating heart from last night’s overindulgence.
She was the oldest of her siblings in her late forties; however, plastic surgery and her contributions to the cosmetic industry masked her aging appearance. Her eyes were green emeralds. Her physique remained intact and could turn heads, thanks to her dedication to her treadmill and weights.
Despite her efforts to stay young, Brenna felt like an aging crone abandoned in a nursing home and left to rot. Her cad of a husband put her on display when he entertained guests on rare occasions, if he decided to come home at all. He would have his way with her both physically (nothing she ever did or said was appropriate in front of company), and sexually, to satisfy his drunken appetite, once the guests had left. Since he acquired her as one of his conquests, he had pretty much done away with her.
Her husband, Chad Staithe, worked as a biotechnology engineer. He had swept her off her feet in college and charmed her into marrying him. He tended to her long enough to consummate and propagate, but left her to rear three spoiled imps who had since grown up to become ungrateful ogres.
The Staithes’ home flaunted wealth with pretentiousness. The custom-built mansion had a built-in swimming pool and Jacuzzi. Each occupant had his own bedroom suite with all of the accommodations of a small apartment unit.
A long, curved, oak wood staircase, embellished by a wrought-iron banister, separated the upstairs from the first floor. A decorative chandelier descended from the top of the house to the center, crying for attention. The living room, a den, and an open kitchen beautified the home with red oak hardwood floors.
The kitchen was a surgical suite made of stainless steel designed to create a pristine ambience. Except for the arched brick wall that hung over the stove, the canary yellow walls with white trim emanated brightness as they shrouded the gloominess hidden within. Every room was an immaculate veil trying to mask the stains and obscenities that plagued this household.
The high ceilings in each room displayed custom-made chandelier-fans for circulating the much needed air conditioning on hot Atlanta days. Their guest house, near the pool area, was a den of debauchery.
“CJ, come here!” Brenna sat up and yelled. “There are sirens everywhere! Go turn on the TV downstairs!”
“Turn it on your own dumb self! I’m in my bedroom!” he said as he scowled, his eyes glued to his computer screen.
Twenty-four-year-old Chad Junior, the oldest of the brood, had brown eyes which had become cold and dark like a lost soul. A scar on his forehead tainted his handsome looks. Every time he looked in the mirror he wished he could turn back the clock. He had accidentally scratched his father’s Beamer while riding his bike when he was nine. His father hurled a shoe at him in a fit of rage. The injury left permanent scars that went beyond the surface. Afterwards his bike collected dust and rusted away much like his relationship with his dad.
Despite his scar-tainted forehead, girls drooled over him. However, he preferred girls in his world of