Rocky Soil
The heat of these past few days left much of the soil, grass, plants and trees parched and yearning or water…until he heavens opened overnight on Friday and brought welcome relief of both heat and humidity. The soil cracked and dry, the grass mostly brown with a few green patches, will now revive as it drinks the living water into its cells and reinvigorates.
For our gardens and farmers fields, water is critical. as too is the quality of the soil. Rich fertile soil can produce great yields, feeding all who rely upon it to sustain them. Yet without enough precipitation, that same soil becomes hard, dry, cracked and craggy, the top layer blows away revealing a rocky base that offers little to plants trying to survive or new ones tying to root..the soil becomes rocky, it becomes hard to work, and hard to nourish… as the dryer the soil, the less receptive it is to absorbing the very water it so desperately needs to once again be able to nourish life.
As Spirit tries to nourish us, tries to reinvigorate us, what kind of soil are we. Are we fertile, open to embracing the healing love that emanates form Spirit, are we interested in exploring the way of Jesus, a unique way of moving in the world, or are we dry, craggy and uninterested in learning anything new…interested only in what serves us at any particular moment. Such a way, I suggest is not life giving.
Can new ways of being be plated upon our heart, and souls? I suggest to you that this is always a possibility, if we set such an intention…an intention to allow nurture, to allow new ideas, to allow self-examination, then embark upon it
Like the farmer who discovers that the soil is too acidic for particular crop. Once the crop rotation is changes, the plants bloom and flourish.
Our gospel today tells us of a parable Jesus shared with those gathered ‘round him. Tossing seeds about, some root and grow strong, others hold their own for a little bit, others wither quickly. He talks about the quality of the soil and the difference it makes to the seeds.
Rocky soil is rocky soil..nothing grows…or does it?
I grew up in Nova Scotia….early years, summer were spent at the cottage in Shad bay, the shore was rocky and rugged, with a small sand beach at the bottom of what seemed like an enormous hill….as well thee would an annual day trip to Peggy’s Cove, about a half hour drive away. There we would see massive glaciated rocks, with little ponds in between, scraggy trees…very little grew…yet in between the rocks as you hopped from section to section, sometimes you find the beautiful tiny tree or flower.
The fearsome winds had blown soil into the crack between the rocks….a seed had also been caught by the wind and dropped on this very spot as if by miracle, and amongst these awesome giant boulders that were as tall as two story buildings, was this petite green tree or bright purple flower.
In the midst of all these uninhabitable boulders and rocky granular soil, that appeared impenetrable…the wind had gathered enough fertile soil to allow a singular seed to root.. and something to grow, standing strong in the salty air.
If we but open ourselves ever so slightly, to the possibility of spiritual growth, something happens, a little seed of faith and hope finds a corner in which to root, and when nourished begins to grow. Two thousand years later Jesus offers us the same opportunity that he offered the seeds as they scared across the soil…those that root in fertile grown, will flourish and grow, those that do not have secure footing will flounder and shrivel up
We need to examine what type of soil we are…are we rocky and craggy, not really interested in growing In new ways, or are we receptive to exploring new ways of being, welcoming the presence Spirit in our lives. For when we open ourselves, ever so slightly, interesting things may happen, the light of Christ creeps Into some of the those dark places where we like to hide and illuminates a new path for to journey upon, a path of healing and love of light and joy, a place where we allow ourselves to experience being embraces by Spirit each and every day. Amen.