If we go back and read the first chapter of Genesis, we are treated with the creation story, that all of us probably know by heart. We hear how God created Heaven and Earth, and of all things both “visible and invisible”: The plants, the animals…”living things both small and great” as the psalmist says. After He created us in His own Image and Likeness, the very first words that human ears ever heard from the Creator of All: “Be fruitful…”.
We see often in the parables that our Lord gives us in the Gospels, how our lives on this earth are very much like a field or a Garden. In the book “The Way of the Ascetics”, we hear: “The soil that we till has been received from God, as well as the seed and the sun’s warmth, and the rain and the power to grow…but the work is entrusted to us.” In other words, this life…this garden of the heart, has been given to us by God Himself. He gives us EVERYTHING we need to bear good fruit in order to truly live, but it is up to us to do the work.
We heard in the Gospel today, the parable of the sower. There is often a lot of emphasis (rightfully so) that is placed on the condition of the dirt that the seeds are falling upon. How have we prepared our hearts to receive the heavenly seeds in our own lives? Today however, I want to turn our attention from the soil and onto the seeds themselves. Every good farmer knows that there are seeds that are good, and seeds that are not so good. To be fruitful, we need to make sure we have the right seeds planted in the Garden of our hearts.
The seed that comes from God fills our hearts with life. It permeates our existence and gives us an energy that the world can simply not provide. How many of us can say that there was a time where we had to fight with ourselves to get to Church, because we were simply too tired, or in pain, or wiped out from the past week? Even priests have these moments in their life where they wake up and have to drag themselves out of bed to the Church or to the prayer corner. Yet, so often what happens, is that as soon as we enter into the doors of the Church, if the soil of our hearts has been prepared to receive the Divine Seed that is offered to us, we leave energized! We hear our Lord say that “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God”…and it is through those Divine Words, by that Divine Seed, through His Very Body and Blood, that we leave Church full of life and light from the Grace that we had received.
How often I hear those words from so many of you on a weekly basis: ”Father, I am so glad I was able to come to Church Today”. There is absolutely no better way to start the day, ESPECIALLY for people who have prepared the soil of their hearts before hand, than the Divine Liturgy. We need these spiritual things in our Lives in order to live the life that we were meant to live.
We have to be cautious at the same time, because there is a lot of junk that, if allowed to take root, will produce bad fruit. I think of the political divide in our country today as a major example…anger produced on both sides which comes from the Devil Himself that seeks to Divide the children of God. I know that many of you have privately come to me with the same sentiment, that the constant issues of the world have left you tired, exhausted, and drained of hope for the future. The seeds of division have sapped the life out of our country in so many ways…leaving us praying and hoping for some hope for Divine Intervention.
I must admit that there are times when I think we are beyond saving, but then I witness something like what happened at the end of the hearings for the new Supreme Court Justice this past week. I tuned in and out during the week, and there were moments that I felt a bit drained from the back and forth and the divisions that exist between the two biggest political parties in our nation…but it was all worth it for those who witnessed what happened at the end of these proceedings. After 3 days of back and forth, the Democratic Senator from California ended her comments by saying: “This has been one of the best set of hearings I have participated in. It leaves one with a lot of hopes, a lot of questions, and even some ideas perhaps of good bipartisan legislation we can put together.” Her republican counterpart responded in kind, and these simple words ended with a hug and a sign of mutual respect for each other.
Planting good seeds, watering them with a hug, these are the types of moments that can take a hardened soil and soften them for something Divine to come and transform the field.
May our Lord continue to allow us the ability to recognize and embrace things from above…those good seeds which give us Hope. Light, and Life not only in this world, but in the world to come!