We live in farming country, so this parable is very near to our own lives for many of us. As Christians, we are supposed to become like Jesus. That is, He is the Divine Sower, and we are supposed to take the Word we receive here at the Mass and spread it into the world around us. That is, we take the mercy and love of God we hear of in the scriptures, experience in the Sacraments, and bring that same grace and love into the place where God has planted us. That is so that we might “bloom where we are planted,” and seeing that blossom of God’s love in our own lives, others might want to experience it too.
This morning though, I noticed that it says, “a sower went out to sow.” That’s an important thing to pay attention to. Though Jesus goes on to describe different kinds of soil, He never tells us that the sower changed the soil. They planted the seed. The soil, of course, Jesus goes on to explain represents the condition of the human heart that is hearing the Word of God. God can only change that heart when that person chooses to allow Him in. It’s not our job to change their heart… simply to expose them to the seed, to the Word.
Saint Teresa of Calcutta once said: “God has called us not to be successful, but to be faithful.” We need to stop worrying about results. Jesus calls us to sow the seed, and then let Him do the tilling. God is the one who prepares the soil, who reaches down with His mighty saving Hand and removes the rocks and briars that stand in the way. It’s up to us to simply point to Him, to share the Gospel, to share mercy and love. We do that by pointing to the Church, pointing to the Sacraments, living a life of faith that shows that we believe.
That’s why Paul reminds Timothy to “stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.” We are supposed to be so on fire with the love of God that people notice it. That they look at our lives and say “Hey, they are different… and I want whatever they have.”
A reflection on the readings for the Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus: January 26th, 2022