The Sower and the Seed

The question that jumps out of today's gospel is: 'what kind of soil am I?' The seed has been sown, is being sown and will be sown - will it get eaten up by birds immediately, or start growing quickly, but without roots and be scorched and withered, or get choked out by thorns and thistles - or will it find a home in the warm, fertile ground and grow strong, deep-rooted and fruit-bearing?

When I think about which of these kinds of soil I am, the answer comes to me: all of them, at various times - and, sometimes, all at the same time. Of course, as a believer, I want to be the good, rich soil where that seed of God's word can grow and bring forth fruit. But the whole image of being 'soil' implies something passive - the soil can't do anything to make itself better. As they say, 'it is what it is'. Only the Maker of the soil can change it from barren or stony or thorny to rich and fertile.

At some point the illustration does break down - the soil can't actively change itself from what it is to something better; but we, who are represented as soil, have the great gift of free will. And so, although we have no more power to change ourselves from bad to good than the soil does, we can decide to ask God to do that for us. If we're sincere in that request, He certainly will grant it.

It's astounding how fertile God is. From a single seed sprouts a plant that, when it bears fruit, produces exponentially more than the single seed it came from. The apple tree provides many dozens of apples, each one of which contains many more seeds. God's abundance can hardly be imagined. I wonder if it's because He knows that so many seeds will fall on the bad ground that He makes sure that those that take root in good ground will produce a harvest that more than compensates for the loss.

There's a song that I've sung many times as a music director. It's called 'Lord, Let My Heart Be Good Soil'. Maybe this could be our prayer today. The lyrics go:

Lord, let my heart be good soil,

Open to the seed of your word.

Lord, let my heart be good soil,

Where love can grow and peace is understood.

When my heart is hard, break the stone away,

When my heart is cold, warm it with the day,

When my heart is lost, lead me on your way.

Lord, let my heart,

Lord, let my heart,

Lord, let my heart be good soil.