PHOTO:Mary van Balen
“…Others fell on rich soil and produced their crop, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty…”
Todays gospel reading is the familiar story of the sower taken from MT 13. Most often, when I encounter it, I think of the seed as Gods Word and of myself as the soil. Am I inhospitable ground? Shallow? Distracted? Of course, I want to be rich soil where Gods word can take root and bear fruit not only for me but also for the Kingdom. Today, however, I had a different take.
Perhaps using half of a giant zucchini from my sister-in-laws garden this morning suggested the new angle. As I scooped out seeds and pulp and shredded the rest for zucchini bread, I pictured Lauries garden space. She has cultivated it for years and the earth is loamy and dark, a fertile place for anything to grow. I imagined being in such a place myself. The Collegeville Institute provided such a place for me. I thought of the reading and myself as the seed in need of a nurturing place unobstructed by hard ground, bedrock, or rampant weeds where my shell would soften and my roots sink deep and spread wide, providing sustenance and anchor for the self that grows above ground, exposed to storms and drought as well as gentle rain and needed sunlight.
If I am the seed, what is the soil? Only God provides such a place for us: Gods own self, always available, always safe, rich, and life giving. A month ago I wrote a blog about thirty minutes of quiet time with God. Such prayer is a way to sink ones roots into Gods Abundance. Remembering throughout the day that we are surrounded and are sustained by God helps us draw nourishment from her Abundance.
Thinking of myself as the seed and the plant also reminds me of the grace of stability. I cant physically remain in one place all day, but my spirit can remained anchored in the Gods Life, and perhaps like summer zucchini plants, yield fruit a hundredfold!
© 2010 Mary van Balen
Speak Your Mind