by Father David Daly, LC
Luke 8:4-15
When a large crowd gathered, with people from one town after
another journeying to him, he spoke in a parable. "A sower went out
to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path and
was trampled, and the birds of the sky ate it up. Some seed fell on
rocky ground, and when it grew, it withered for lack of moisture.
Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew with it and choked
it. And some seed fell on good soil, and when it grew, it produced
fruit a hundredfold." After saying this, he called out, "Whoever
has ears to hear ought to hear." Then his disciples asked him what
the meaning of this parable might be. He answered, "Knowledge of
the mysteries of the kingdom of God has been granted to you; but to
the rest, they are made known through parables so that ´they may
look but not see, and hear but not understand.´ This is the
meaning of the parable. The seed is the word of God. Those on the
path are the ones who have heard, but the devil comes and takes
away the word from their hearts that they may not believe and be
saved. Those on rocky ground are the ones who, when they hear,
receive the word with joy, but they have no root; they believe only
for a time and fall away in time of trial. As for the seed that
fell among thorns, they are the ones who have heard, but as they go
along, they are choked by the anxieties and riches and pleasures of
life, and they fail to produce mature fruit. But as for the seed
that fell on rich soil, they are the ones who, when they have heard
the word, embrace it with a generous and good heart, and bear fruit
through perseverance.
Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, thank you
for this precious time of meditation and dialogue with you. In
meditating on the Parable of the Sower, help me to change so that I
will not put any thorns, rocks or hardness of heart in the way of
your plans for my life.
Petition: Lord, grant me docility to your will for
me.
1. Hard Ground. We act like hard ground when we
hear the inspirations of the Holy Spirit to do what is right, but
let them pass as if it were no big deal. We let the devil take away
the grace Jesus offers us, and it does not sink into our hearts.
Many times superficiality and a lack of faith prevent us from
reflecting and taking advantage of the lights that God gives us. We
should pray to be more spiritual.
2. Rocky Ground. How many of us hear the Word of
God with joy and follow Christ in the peaceful times, but fall away
in the times of trial? We need to let our spiritual roots grow
deeper; we need to let the roots of Gods word grow more profoundly
into our hearts. The best way to do this is by reading and
meditating on the Gospel and solidifying this faith through the
sacraments of confession and the Eucharist.
3. Thorny Ground. The thorny ground represents
those of us who are slowed down in our spiritual life by the
anxieties, riches and pleasures of life. When the ground of our
hearts is throny, we fail to produce the mature fruit that Christ
expects. And we live in the midst of so many thorns
. In order to
let Gods grace grow in us, we have to sacrifice our own comfort
and pleasure, because apart from the cross there is no growth in
personal holiness.
Dialogue with Christ: Lord Jesus, treat me like dirt
but
good dirt. I dont want to place thorns or rocks or hardness of
heart in the way of your word. I want to be fertile soil for your
word so that you can use me as an instrument to save souls and
glorify you.
Resolution: I promise to pray these words many times
today: Not my will, but yours be done.