Meditation Minute

My Dearest Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

“Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.”

Gospel Reading: Mark 4:1-20

On another occasion, Jesus began to teach by the sea. A very large crowd gathered around him so that he got into a boat on the sea and sat down. And the whole crowd was beside the sea on land. And he taught them at length in parables, and in the course of his instruction he said to them, “Hear this! A sower went out to sow and as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Other seed fell on rocky ground where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep. And when the sun rose, it was scorched and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it and it produced no grain. And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit. It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.” He added, “Whoever has ears to hear ought to hear.” And when he was alone, those present along with the Twelve questioned him about the parables. He answered them, “The mystery of the Kingdom of God has been granted to you. But to those outside everything comes in parables, so that they may look and see but not perceive, and hear and listen but not understand, in order that they may not be converted and be forgiven.” Jesus said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? Then how will you understand any of the parables? The sower sows the word. These are the ones on the path where the word is sown. As soon as they hear, Satan comes at once and takes away the word sown in them. And these are the ones sown on rocky ground who, when they hear the word, receive it at once with joy. But they have no roots; they last only for a time. Then when tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Those sown among thorns are another sort. They are the people who hear the word, but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, and it bears no fruit. But those sown on rich soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”

At times our faith is like the seeds that fall along the sides of the path. There are a lot of rocks with very little soil. Our seed sprouts but does not survive. How often do we get excited about something in our lives to only see it quickly wither away. Maybe we have fallen away from daily prayer or even strayed from mass. We go back to mass and while in mass, we feel the instant gratification of prayer and the Eucharist. In the moment we make all kind of promises to God, but before you even leave the church parking lot you’re arguing with your family and completely forget the commitments you just made. Jesus tells us that during these times we “immediately receive it with joy” but our faith has no roots so it quickly withers. We must learn to nurture and grow our faith. It must have a solid foundation. It must have good soil with plenty of nutrients.

Jesus tells us that the seeds sown in the soil will grow, but that they still need to be cared for. If we let weeds grow in our lives, they can choke out our faith. So often we have strong beginnings and a good foundation, but we let the evils of society prevail. Evil lurks in so many places including the people we associate with, the television we watch and the places we go. If we are not careful, Jesus tells us that “the cares of the world, and the delight in riches, and the desire for other things, enter in and choke the word.” We become numb to the Word of God because we are surrounded by materialistic things. We must be careful and guard our lives to ensure that we do not fall prey to the sins of our post modern society.

Christ gives us great hope and promise. “But those sown upon the good soil are the ones who hear the word and accept it and bear fruit.” Our faith must bear fruit. We are called as Christians to preach the gospel daily and as St Francis say, use words only if necessary. It is through a strong foundation, good nourishment and tending of the seeds that they produce many fruits. As we are a couple of weeks away from the beginning of lent, it is crucial to reflect upon your life. You need to decide where you have sown your seeds. Take some time to reflect upon your conscience. You should begin a deep examination of your soul to determine if your seeds are sown on the sidewalk or sown in the fertile fields. If your seeds are in the field, then are you allowing materialistic things such as money and pride between you and God? We should begin lent with a clean soul. Reconciliation helps to center our life and our journey through lent. Now is a great time to seek the Sacrament of Reconciliation. At the end of every day, you should reflect back on this Gospel reading and decide what type of day you had; where were your seeds sown? It is amazing the transformation this practice will have on your life.

A Simple Prayer

Lord Jesus, I have sown my seeds. Help me find the fertile soil.

Let me have the faith and wisdom to see your divine truth.

Open my ears to your call and my eyes to the Word so I can journey with you.

Yours in Christ

Michael Marcon