I am not a farmer. I don’t know farming. It is not something that I am even especially attracted to. I have very little experience with seeds and planting and watering. My limited experience comes from my childhood. As a young kid, my mom had the idea of starting a garden and I got to choose what fruit I would grow. I chose watermelons. I was very careful as to digging the holes to the proper depth. And I placed a single seed into each of the holes. I watered at the proper time and eventually I had 3 watermelons. Not all the watermelons made it.
My other experience was while in the seminary. I spent a couple of months working in beet fields in the western part of Spain. The beet field work, under the blazing sun, involved making sure the previously planted beets were correctly spaced so that they could grow to their fullest potential. Bending over, all day long, I had to transplant some of them and throw out others. Honestly, the best part of the day was the post-lunch siesta, simply laying down in the rows.
Jesus speaks the parable today to a large group of people, not just his disciples. Upon first reading this Gospel, I tend to ask myself, which type of soil am I? Am I the beaten down path? Is my soul the rocky ground or the area full of thorns? Or is my life that perfectly good soil in which the seed grows the way it should and produces fruit?
Types of Soil
The trampled path has been beaten down because there is so much traffic. So many things that come and go have beaten down the ground so that is has become hardened and the seed cannot penetrate the earth. The seed is then easily eaten by the birds of distraction.
Upon the rocky ground the seed is received with initial enthusiasm and begins to grow, until it hits an obstacle. The rocks do not let the seed grow more. It loses enthusiasm and gives up.
The seed that falls on thorny ground alongside the thorns has no problem and everything seems fine. Then comes a moment when the seed and the thorns don’t have enough room to co-exist and the worldly realities take priority over the true seed. Instead of the seed becoming a priority, the thorns take charge and choke the seed of life. It was good while it lasted.
Not One Type
I realize that I have all those types of ground in my life; I am not one type of ground. I have areas that are trampled down with a hardness of heart, and I give in to every distraction that comes my way; I don’t want God to enter. There are those areas in which I am enthused about receiving God, but it becomes difficult, and I give up. Many times, I fail because I try to go it alone. At other moments, I allow life to dictate how I receive God and His Word instead of allowing God to enlighten my life and lead me.
God is love. His mercy extends to every part of life. Most farmers would only plant in those areas that will bear the harvest they are searching for. The farmer is not particular about where he plants his seed. He just throws it. He is generous in the tossing of his seed. The seed lands where it lands. God wants every part of me. He throws his seed everywhere, even where it seems impossible for a seed to grow. For God, every type of soil can become rich and bountiful through perseverance.
